The Tragedy
by Dyassie
Summary: A tragedy brings Jareth back into Sarah's life in an unusual way.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own any rights to the characters in this story other than David and Mary Elizabeth.

Jareth will definitely come into play but not before a few chapters. This story popped in my head one morning I could not sleep and I already have it completely played out in my head. I just have to write the rest down in detail. I actually started writing this one down after writing only the first two chapters of Labyrinth: Sarah's Return, but wanted to wait for a while before posting a new story. Plus I did not want to get side-tracked from writing the other one. However, I did not want to wait any longer. I already have the next few chapters written down. I just need to type them up so I can add them. Therefore, it should only be a day or two before I add more to this story.

Hope you enjoy. Please review.

* * *

The Tragedy

Chapter 1

As Sarah's husband, David, drove her and their beautiful one-year old daughter, Mary Elizabeth, home from her brother Toby's apartment, her mind wandered back to a time and place seventeen years ago. She could scarcely believe it had been that long ago since she had wished her brother, who was around her daughter's age at the time, away to the Goblin King. It still felt like yesterday when she was forced by Jareth to run his labyrinth in order to reclaim her brother. Her mind continued to wonder across her old adventures through the labyrinth and her friends, Hoggle, Ludo, and Sir Didymus until David brought the car to a sudden halt.

Stunned by the quickness of the stop, Sarah looked up to notice that there was a vehicle sitting in the way with their emergency brakes on.

"Sorry," David grimaced, "I'm going to go see if I can help them."

"Okay," Sarah replied, "but please be careful and keep an eye out for oncoming traffic. You know how this road is."

"Sure, Sarah. Do not worry so. I'll be fine, honey."

With that David opened the door, stepped out closing the door behind him, and headed towards the other vehicle.

The road they were on was a rarely used curvy road that could be extremely treacherous especially at nights. Sarah had not wanted to take this road, but David had insisted since it was late and the quickest way home from Toby's. Sarah wished that they could have just driven on pass the stopped vehicle, but knew that they should also help if they could. It just made her too nervous to have David out there exposed to a potentially dangerous situation.

Sarah could have never imagined how justified her worries were. As she watched David approach the car in front of them, Sarah witnessed as one of her worst nightmares unfolded in front of her very eyes. She watched frozen in terror as a gun was drawn out towards David. She wanted to shout to David to run or do something but no voice came out of her mouth. She could do nothing as she watched David being shot point blank to his chest one second slowly followed by his body crumbling to the ground in the next second.

In shock, Sarah was unaware of what unfolded afterwards until she felt a gun being pressed into her side. Still not moving her arm was roughly yanked as she was told in a gruff voice, "If you get out now and cause no trouble lady, then we will let you live."

As the carjackers started to drag Sarah from the car, her maternal instincts took over causing her to think of her innocent baby in the backseat who had just lost her father only moments ago.

Allowing herself to finish being dragged out, she stood up and started towards the back door frantically saying, "Just let me get my…"

Sarah never got a chance to finish her words as she felt a bullet plunge into her back causing to fall forward against the car. She just glimpsed Mary Elizabeth before violent hands snatched her away from the car throwing her body backwards causing it to tumble over the steep rocky hill that sloped down the side of the road.

As she heard the sounds of both cars as they raced away, Sarah's last thoughts were of what was going to happen to her baby. _Will Mary Elizabeth be alright? What will they do to her_? _My poor baby! Please someone watch out for her!_ After that everything disappeared.


	2. Chapter 2

The Tragedy

Chapter 2

* * *

It was hours before a lonely traveler happened upon the scene of David's lifeless body still lying in the middle of the road. It wasn't until the police arrived an hour later that Sarah's broken body was found bloodied and bruised and barely clinging on to life.

"After all the bleeding from the bullet wound and the fall, I'm stunned the poor woman is still alive," Officer Davis remarked as him and his partner anxiously waited for the EMTs, Emergency Medical Team, to arrive for they had done all they could for Sarah with the emergency kit kept in their car. They could not move her for years of training had taught them better but they had managed to bandage up the wound so that it was no longer seeping blood at an alarming rate.

"I know. She's a fighter all right. She must have a strong will to live is all I can say. Hopefully, whatever has kept her alive this long will be enough," Officer Turney replied as he turned to glance down at the body at the bottom of the hill where he stood so the EMTs would not miss their location. He wished they would get there soon, he did not know how much longer the woman's body could endure all the damage it had received. They still were certain exactly how long ago the incident had occurred, but believed it must have been several hours ago.

Less than an hour after receiving a call from the police that his sister had been shot and taken to the emergency, Toby rushed through the emergency room doors at the hospital after having to wait a frustrating amount of time at the front entrance to go through the mandated security check for weapons due to a recent rise in gang activity.

Rushing to the front desk where a middle-age nurse sat filing paperwork, "My sister, Sarah Wilson, was brought in about an hour ago from a gunshot wound. Is she going to be okay? Where is she? Can I see her yet? Where did you take her baby, Mary Elizabeth? How's the baby," Toby questioned in a panic for he had already been informed of David's death over the phone making him even more worried and protective over his sister and niece.

The nurse at the desk calmly looked up and replied, "Once second. Let me go see what I can find out for you." After disappearing for what seemed like forever to the unnerved Toby, the nurse returned and calmly replied, "Your sister is still in surgery. I will tell Dr. Jenkins when he is finished that you are here, so he can come speak with you about her condition. At this time, I have no other news about your sister."

Looking up in earnest hesitating before speaking the nurse continued, "I do not want to alarm you, but I have no information on a baby brought in with her. "

"What," Toby replied in wide-eyed shock unable to process this last piece of information.

The experienced nurse kept her eyes trained on the nervous young man, "However, one of the police officers on the scene is around the corner waiting to see when the doctor believes she might be able to a statement on what happened. He might know something about the baby."

"Thank you." Toby hurried around the corner to find a tall and slim police officer in his late thirties standing never a door that must lead to where his sister was taken.

"Officer, I'm Toby Williams, Sarah Wilson's brother. I understand you were at the scene."

"Yes, I'm Officer Turney. I am truly sorry about what happened to her and her husband. How can I help you, young man," the officer replied with genuine but tried eyes.

"How bad was she? How about her baby? Where's Mary Elizabeth? The nurse at the front desk had no news of a baby. Is she all right? Please, I need to know," Toby rambled.

Worry crossed the Officer Turney's face at the mention of a baby.

"Your sister seemed bad off, but appears to be a fighter. I would have never thought anyone could still have been alive after the condition we found her in. The baby you mention may be the reason. There is nothing like a mother's love for a child. However, we did not find a baby at the scene. Are you certain she was with them?"

"Yes, they were heading home from my place, all three of them. What if the people that did this to her killed Mary Elizabeth too? Sarah is not going to handle losing her husband and not knowing what has happened to her child. How am I going to tell her? You must find Mary Elizabeth. She cannot lose her too."

"We will do everything in our power to find the baby, I promise. If the people behind this harm that child…," the officer, who was a father himself, shook his head in frustration and anger.

"But first, I need your help. I need a detailed description of Sarah's vehicle. I also need a photo of the child, if you have one. Does she have any distinguishing marks that could help us identify her?"


	3. Chapter 3

The Tragedy

Chapter 3

* * *

Toby was finishing giving Officer Turney all the information he could when Dr. Jenkins walked out to inform them of Sarah's condition.

"Mr. Williams, Mrs. Wilson is in stable but critical condition. We removed the bullet, but she lost a lot of blood and her body suffered multiple lacerations from the fall she took. She is conscious so you may go in and see her. However, due to the pain medication we gave her, she is still quite incoherent. Also, she keeps asking about her baby."

Toby exhaled a relief.

"So, she will be okay?"

"Yes, we will move her to the intensive care unit later, but it will still be a while before we release her."

Sensing an end to their exchange, Officer Turney asked, "I know now is not a good time, but when do you think she will be able to give a statement and answer questions about what happened? The sooner she can, the better chance we have of finding her daughter and capturing the guys that did this."

"I understand, but we want to keep her on the pain meds for a while, so wait a day or two. We should have the dosage lowered or switched by then.

"Okay, in the mean time, I need the bullet bagged up so I can take it to processing to be analyzed."

"I'll have a nurse do that right away and bring it to you. Mr. Williams, if you'll follow me I'll show you to your sister's room."

Before following, Toby turned to thank Officer Turney who asked him to call either if he had any more information or if Sarah said anything that even seemed relatively important. The officer also gave his well wishes to Sarah's recovery and promises to do everything in his power to find Mary Elizabeth and the people that had done this. Being a father himself made this case all that more important to the officer.

Toby followed Dr. Jenkins through the doors to Sarah's room. Although he was eager to see with his own eyes that his sister was okay, he was also scared of what to say to her. How could he tell her that her daughter was missing? That no one knew how Mary Elizabeth was.

Before opening the door, Toby paused, took in a deep breath, and opened the door. He gasped at what he saw. His sister who he had always seen as strong was laying there looking so helpless and weak.

Seeing him, Sarah slurred, "Tooobbbyyyy."

Striding over towards the bed, Toby took a seat in the chair near the bed. "How are you feeling, Sarah?"

"Ooookkkk. Maaarrryyy?"

Struck by the question he had already known was coming, he looked straight into Sarah's eyes and replied, "I'm sorry, but I don't know. She wasn't at the scene. The police are looking for her."

"Nooooo! Backseat … to get her…shot me…drove off."

Toby's eyes widen realizing what Sarah meant.

"It will be okay Sarah. They will find her."

"Nooo…I must…find…"

"No Sarah, you must rest."

"Noooo…," Sarah hoarsely hollered as she started tugging at the IVs restraining her.

Toby raced over grabbing Sarah's hands to stop her.

"Sarah you cannot do anything in your condition. Beside neither of us would even begin to know where to start looking. Now, don't injure yourself further by being stubborn and stupid. Let the police do their job. The best thing you can do is to get better so you can take care of Mary Elizabeth when they find her. She needs you healthy."

Something in what Toby had said seemed to have made sense to Sarah as she settled down and started crying.

"It will be okay Sarah." Toby leaned over and carefully hugged his sister.

He calmed her down and waited for her to fall to sleep before using the bedside phone to call Officer Turney to tell him what Sarah had tried to tell him. The officer assured him that they would add to the APB, all point's bulletin, that a baby was likely still in the back seat of the car.

Toby hung up the phone and remained at the hospital the rest of the night by his sister's side.


	4. Chapter 4

The Tragedy

Chapter 4

Language wise, I know I could have made the carjackers more aggressive, but I did not want to put cussing in there. I recently read a book where because of the natural of the characters, cussing was constant in the book, I mean almost every other sentence, but the language was just so awful that it was hard to read even through it had a really good storyline.

* * *

Two cars pulled to a stop behind an abandoned warehouse after driving most of the night to a neighboring city. Their two drivers emerged, one darkly glowing in the aftermath of their victory while the other tortured by his nightmare of what he had just done.

"It gets easier every time Sam," the man reassured his young partner who was barely sixteen with a grin, "Proud of you boy, your first kill. There'll be more."

"I hope your right, man, about the getting easier part. Just why did it have to be a woman? I don't like the idea. She should have just done what I said. That's how it was suppose to go down. She acted like she would, but then," he looked at Mike, a burly man in his early twenties, with widen shell-shocked eyes, "it's like she went crazy, started for the back door. I don't know what happened."

"Get over it, boy. When they know it's coming, they do crazy things, like trapped little animals desperate for escape," he laughed loudly and cruelly.

This sudden loudness broke through Mary Elizabeth's sleep causing her awake violently into a screaming fit.

Mike turned towards the car, "What the heck?"

Sam raced over opening the back door peering in to see the helpless babe crying desperately in the backseat. At that moment the guilt of what he had done sunk in even deeper than before.

"It's…It's a baby…her baby…that's why," Sam stammered as realization of why the woman as reacted so hit him. _She was only trying to get her baby,_ he thought as he closed his eyes, _and…and I shot her._

Mike moved towards the car shoving Sam out of the way. "Well, we'll take care of this little problem fairly easily now," he said roughing grabbing for Mary Elizabeth.

"What are you going to do Mike?"

"I am going to bash her noisy little head in. Then, dump her in a dumpster a couple of blocks. It will take the police days to find her, if they ever do, and even then they won't be able to trace it back to us."

Surprised at his own self, Sam declared, "I'll do it."

Mike glared suspiciously at him, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, man. I mean, after all, I've already done in her mother. A babe should be a piece of cake."

"Glad to see you being a man about it. Here," he said as he shoved the child into Sam's hands. "Now, get moving. I'm not going to do all the work on that car alone. Gotta it."

Sam scampered off knowing Mike meant business. When he got a few blocks away he turned down a darkened alley.

"Don't worry precious. It will be okay." Sam couldn't bear the thought of murdering her or of letting his heartless partner do it.

He found an old cardboard box and placed her in it. He shivered in the cold night air hoping someone would find her before she ended up freezing to death.

"Poor child. All Alone. Just like me. Father and mother dead. Maybe it would be better if you were dead too, but I won't do it. I can't. This at least gives you a chance. Maybe you'll have a better one than I did."

He gave one last look at Mary Elizabeth knowing that the thought of her and her mother would haunt him for the rest of his life.

Sam walked away aware that if Mike ever found out what he did that he would probably kill him.

Mary Elizabeth's cry echoed down the alleyway for an hour. Those that had heard her screams did not think much of it, thinking it was just a neighbor's child.

This left her in the freezing in the night making her screams more frantic and strained until her little voice started giving out.

Her screams had not gone unnoticed by all, just by all human beings.

As Mary Elizabeth's screams became noticeable less with her lips beginning to turn blue, the creatures in the alley emerged circling around her. They had heard her. They had waited, waited for their prize, waited just long enough to be able to claim her.

"She's ours now," whispered one creature.

"What should we do with her," questioned another.

"Take her back, take her to him," stated yet a third.

"Grab her," ordered a fourth.

Collecting the child, the creatures set off to a world unknown to most human beings.

The goblins had, after an hour, the right to claim any abandoned child.

She was now a foundling to be taken back to their king, back to Jareth, The King of the Goblins.


	5. Chapter 5

The Tragedy

Chapter 5

* * *

Groggily Sarah pulled herself up further in the bed looking around the hospital room wincing at the pain of every movement. She found Toby passed out in a recliner pulled close to her bed. She smiled slightly at the sleeping boy, no, now a man she decided. It was sometimes hard for her to forget that Toby was now grown and no longer a boy the little boy she had known. She still saw him as such, just as she saw a lot of that little boy in her own child.

She drew her legs up close to her chest wrapping her arms around them. Sarah squeezed her eyes shut laying her head on her knees as she thought of Mary Elizabeth, lost and alone somewhere out there. She prayed her child was okay.

Her mind relived the events that had brought her to this point. Seeing David murdered before her eyes, feeling herself being shot, and hearing the car with her baby driving away. She forced herself not to dwell on David's death. She knew she would have to eventually face her grief, but not yet, not while Mary Elizabeth was still out there. She couldn't handle them both. She couldn't even contemplate the possibly of never seeing her child again. She knew it was a possibly, but couldn't imagine it actually happening.

_She must be out there somewhere. They have to find her._

Just then, Toby began to stir. Opening his eyes he found his sister with tears silently streaming down her face. He rose from the recliner to sit on the edge of the bed wrapping his arms around her.

"It will be okay, Sarah."

"They must find her."

"They will."

"I cannot lose her."

"You won't."

"How do you know that? There's no way you can possibly know that."

"I don't, Sarah. However, the police will do the best they can. The only thing we can do is hope. We must not lose hope, Sarah. Someone will find her."

Toby held Sarah wishing he could do more for her.

"I just hope she is okay. I hope wherever she is she is safe and unharmed," Sarah replied more to herself than to Toby remembering the horrible men that had done this.

Sarah might have been somewhat relieved to know that at least Mary Elizabeth was out of harm's way of those men. However, it might have scared her to know that Jareth's goblins had the child taking her to him.

Jareth sat on his throne looking bored as he watched some of the goblins run around banging each other's heads with something that he could not begin to discern what it was. At one time, this might have amused him, the childish often dangerous antics of the goblins that inhabited his castle.

Just then he heard four of goblins just outside the door talking very animatedly and noisily about something. As he peered at the door, three of the four ran through the door straight to his throne. He didn't really want to know what they had found. They often bored him with their excitement over meaningless junk they found in the outside world.

"My king, we have found something interesting. We think you'll want to see."

"What is it this time?" he questioned unable to muster up any excitement.

"Tog, bring it in."

Jareth watched as the final goblin hurried through the door carrying a small bundle. To Jareth's surprise the small bundle contained a baby.

"Where did you get this child?" Jareth gave them a stern look for they knew better than just taking a child.

"From a box. Babe was crying, no one came. Waited an hour based on rules. Then, we took her. She's a foundling. "

Jareth nodded relieved that the goblins had at least adhered to the rules and not just randomly took a child like they had done a few times in the past. The goblins' mentalities were often no more than that of a mere child.

"Hand the babe here," Jareth said reaching down for the child smiling for he loved children. That is why he took the unwanted children, those that were wished away and those that were abandoned.

Grinning at the baby he cooed, "Now why would anyone ever want to abandon a cutie like you? Well, I'll never abandon you. You'll be mine now."

As he examined the child, there was something strongly familiar about the child. The child reminded him of someone.

When he looked into the child's eyes he realized …

_the eyes…their Sarah's eyes. This is Sarah's child!_


	6. Chapter 6

The Tragedy

Chapter 6

* * *

Jareth slumped back onto his throne still holding the child in his arms. He was stunned.

He just stared at the child. The goblins watched him not understanding what was happening.

"How? Your mother would never! She fought too hard for Toby. I can't believe…"

Then it hit him like a rock.

"Something dreadfully wrong. Your mother would never abandon you willfully. Something's happened to her."

As he formed a crystal in his right hand he cursed that fact that he could not even try to summon Sarah's image. Ever since Sarah had stated, "You have no power over me," he had lost the ability to view her in his crystal. However, he still followed her through the people in her life.

At first, he mainly followed using her parents, but since her father and stepmother had died in a car accidents a few years after Sarah's time in the labyrinth, Jareth had become limited to just Toby that is until David came into her life. He found out about David through Toby's images, just as he had found out about Mary Elizabeth through David's images.

He tried to summon David's image first but the crystal turned completely black. He was aware of the implications that meant. It meant that David was dead. That worried Jareth for if David was dead it could mean Sarah was…

He shook off the idea not wanting to believe it. Next he tried to summon Toby's image. The crystal lit up for a second giving a brief glimpse of a blur before popping. This sent surged of reassurance throughout Jareth. For the crystal popping like that meant that Toby was with Sarah and that she was alive.

He breathed a sigh of relief.

Turning to Bock, a small but quick goblin, Jareth ordered, "Go find the dwarf Hoggle. He should be near the main gate of the labyrinth. Instruct him to come see me directly."

Readjusting Mary Elizabeth in his lap, he vowed to her, "I will find her. I will find your mother. I will find Sarah."

He knew that Sarah must not know where her child was. _She must be devastated_ he thought sadly worried what was happening to the one which had changed his life.

After a while, Hoggle raced into the throne room to see Jareth playing with a baby.

Jareth was so enthralled with Mary Elizabeth that he had barely noticed Hoggle's entrance.

"You called for Hoggle?"

"Yes, Hoggle. A situation has come up and I have an important job for you."

"What is it?" Hoggle questioned almost scared of what it may be.

Jareth detected the fear in his voice. "The job is not the bad part of the situation. I will explain what I want you to do, but first take a look at this baby. Do you notice anything?"

Not sure what Jareth was getting at Hoggle replied, "Not really, just a baby."

"I'm surprised at you Hoggle. This is not just a baby. It is Sarah's baby."

Hoggle's eyes widen in surprise for he had not seen Sarah since her parents had died. She no longer called upon her friends in the labyrinth.

"Sarah's baby. How come she's here? Why do you have her? You didn't take her from Sarah? You haven't done anything to Sarah, have you?" Hoggle questioned rapidly knowing he would be in trouble with the king for it but didn't care when it came to Sarah.

"Hush up Hoggle. I don't know where Sarah is. A group of the goblins found Mary Elizabeth alone and abandoned."

Hoggle blurted out, "But Sarah would never…"

Cutting him off, Jareth snapped, "I know she wouldn't. Something's wrong and I plan to find her. While I'm gone Hoggle, your task is to take care of the child."

"Yes, of course."

Handing the child to Hoggle, Jareth clarified, "And Hoggle, the goblins may mean well, but do not let them near the Mary Elizabeth."

Hoggle simply nodded knowing full too well what Jareth meant.

Jareth's first destination was Sarah and David's house, but he after checking all the messages on the answering and rummaging through some paper he could not find anything that helped.

Next he headed to Toby's apartment. While fumbling through some papers, the door suddenly opened catching Jareth off guard. He looked up to see Toby walking in.

Toby halted mid-step glaring at him with a look that indicated he was prepared to grab something to either attack or defend the intruder with.

"Who are you? What are you doing in my apartment?"


	7. Chapter 7

The Tragedy

Chapter 7

* * *

Before Jareth could even reply, Toby picked up a long umbrella from near the door and started swinging and stabbing it at him shouting, "Get out. Get out now!"

Jareth ducked the umbrella several times before finally catching it and snatching it away for the young man.

"Toby, I'm not going to hurt you. Now calm down and tell me where Sarah is."

"How do you know my name? How do my sister? And exactly how did you get into my locked apartment?" Toby glared at Jareth.

"You may not remember me, but I know both you and your sister from a long time ago. I still keep up with what is going on in your lives. I know you just moved here and are getting ready to start college. I also know that Sarah married a man name David, who just recently died, and they have a child named Mary Elizabeth who is missing. I am only here to help. Now please, where is Sarah?"

"How do you know about David and Mary Elizabeth? That just happened last night. Who are you? The only way you could know that is if you were involved! Where's Mary Elizabeth?" Toby was inching away trying to find something else to use as a weapon.

"Mary Elizabeth is safe. Some, err, some friends of mine found her and brought her to me. That is why I must find Sarah. I know you know where she is." Jareth eyed Toby wary of his intentions knowing the lad did not trust him.

"Some friends, sure," Toby sarcastically replied, "I not going to tell you where Sarah is at because I believe you might just want to finish what you started, you know, no witnesses."

Jareth closed his eyes shaking his head frustrated. He couldn't really blame Toby for his reaction. He would probably have done the same in his position, but this was getting them nowhere. Opening his eyes, he decided to take a different approach that he hoped would work.

"Toby, did Sarah ever mention someone name Jareth or possibly someone named Hoggle? How about a place called the Underground? A labyrinth?"

This floored Toby. How could anyone know about those stories? Sarah use to tell him bedtime stories about a place called the Underground ruled by a Goblin King named Jareth. The king's castle was surrounded by a labyrinth and Hoggle was a friend to the girl in the stories.

"How do you know about those stories?" Toby stammered.

Now they were getting somewhere Jareth thought as he smiled. "Because they're not just stories Toby, I am Jareth. A group of my goblins from Mary Elizabeth abandoned and brought her back to me. When I recognized who she was, I set out to find Sarah."

"Impossible!"

"You don't believe me?"

"Of course not! You're insane! There's no such thing as an actually Goblin King!"

"Okay then, I'll prove it." Before his eyes Jareth vanished from one portion of the room and reappeared in another.

"I don't need to see magic tricks."

Nodding Jareth realized he needed to do something more. Seeing a fireplace in the back of the apartment, he formed a crystal ball throwing it into the fire place causing it to burst into flames.

Toby focused on the fireplace in awe for a minute before turning back towards Jareth. "Okay I believe you now."

Waving a hand to get rid of the flame, Jareth inquired, "So, where is Sarah and what happened?"

"Sarah is in the hospital," Toby replied followed by the rest of the details of the incident that Sarah had told him and Officer Turney earlier. Toby had only came home to take a shower and change clothes before stopping at Sarah's to pack some things for her and heading back to the hospital.

Jareth was outraged. Every bone and muscle in his body shook with rage at wanting to murder these men that had done this. "How bad is she?"

"Still very weak, but she'll be fine especially now that we know where Mary Elizabeth is."

"Good. Let's go."

Toby glanced at Jareth raising an eyebrow. "Don't you think you need to do something about that outfit, first? I don't want people to think you escaped for the psych ward."

Jareth glanced down then looked at the way Toby was dressed and realized he was right. The way he was dressed would stand out among the clothes of this world. He waved a hand magically changing into a blue buttoned down shirt with a pair of black slacks. As he did this, he hair changed from his long locks to a short messy style.

"Okay, I think am passable now."

Toby nodded in approval. "Yeah, that will do. Now go get Mary Elizabeth and we can go. The hospital does not like children in that section but I think they will make an exception in this case."

"It would take awhile for them to let us in right?"

"Probably. They would have to get someone with the authority to override the rules."

"That would take too long. I have a better way. It may not be as good having the child present, but it will allow Sarah to see her faster. Let's go."

Jareth disappeared through the door as Toby followed wondering what he was planning.


	8. Chapter 8

The Tragedy

Chapter 8

* * *

At the hospital, Jareth waited outside Sarah's room while Toby went in alone. The two had decided, more of Jareth demanding, to let Jareth tell Sarah the good news. However, it was decided that Toby should go in alone first to prepare Sarah for Jareth's presence for Jareth was unsure of how Sarah would react to seeing him after all this time. With Sarah's condition, Toby had eagerly agreed to the situation.

"Sarah, um, I have something to tell you," Toby said hesitantly.

Hearing the hesitation in Toby voice concerned filled her eyes when she spoke. "What is it? Please don't tell me it is bad news about Mary Elizabeth."

"No, no, nothing like that," he quickly replied.

Sarah breathed a sigh of relief. "What is it then?"

"Well, when I got back to my apartment, someone was waiting for me. Someone I don't really remember but is an old friend, er, acquaintance of yours."

In Jareth's explanantion of why Toby should talk to Sarah first, Toby had realized that Sarah probably would not consider him a friend.

"He had heard what happened to you and requested to see you. Also, he has something he needs to show you."

"Who? Who is it?" Sarah questioned puzzled and bothered that someone would choose now to track her down just to show her something. She considered it utterly shameful that someone would not have the decency to wait until a better time.

"Jareth," Toby replied watching her carefully for any signal of anxiety.

"Jareth? What? Why?" Sarah had not seen Jareth since the day she had defeated him to get Toby back and could not imagine why he would show up and what he could possibly have to show her.

"I agreed to let him explain, that is, unless you don't want to see him."

Nodding Sarah replied, "It's okay. I'll speak to him. Where is he?"

"Waiting outside." Toby opened the door to let Jareth know it was alright to enter. As he entered, Sarah was slightly shocked for in her mind she was expecting Jareth dressed in his puffy shirts, vests, tight leggings, and boots with his long wild hair. It threw her off to see Jareth dressed in modern human fashion.

"Sarah," was all Jareth could say at first as he assessed and was appalled at the damage those men had done to Sarah, his beautiful Sarah now bruised and broken and in obvious pain. He balled up his fists tight wanted to punch something, no worse, he wanted to hunt those despicable men down and put them through the most unspeakable tortures he could imagine.

Sarah stared back at Jareth still feeling a little surreal that he was really there. "Jareth?"

Shaking his head and unclenching his fists and jaw, he smiled at her replying, "I beg your pardon for being rude by staring Sarah. Toby informed me of your condition, but the sight is still unnerving. I am beyond grief that this has occurred. May justice be done to those that performed this horrid affair."

"Um…it's okay, I know I look awful. Why are you here? I mean, what could you possibly have to show me? I can't understand you trying to contact me, after all these years, especially now when all of this has happened." The confusion was clear on Sarah's face about what happening.

Toby impatiently observed as Jareth approached Sarah's bed wanting to just blurt out the information to her.

"You're still beautiful Sarah," he tilted his head admiring her face, "Last night, some goblins found something very precious. It belongs to you."

"Okay thanks, I guess. Where is it?" Sarah held the palm of her hand outward towards him.

Producing a crystal in his hand, Jareth responded, "It's not with me."

"If that's the case, then thanks but no thanks, you can keep it," retorted a little peeved that Jareth would come all this way to bother her and not even bring whatever it was.

"Sarah…," Toby started but was interrupted by Jareth.

"Please look in the crystal," he pleaded with his eyes as he held the crystal up to Sarah's face.

"Her?" Sarah asked bewildered before she looked into the crystal. Upon looking into the crystal she gasped. She saw her. Mary Elizabeth was sitting on the floor of Jareth's castle being entertained by none other than her old friend Hoggle. Sarah brought her hand up to her eyes to wipe away the tears that had brimmed to the edge of her eyelids.

Turning to Jareth, she asked, "May I?" gesturing to the crystal.

Beaming he placed the crystal in her hands.

"Thank you. Thank you so much for finding her and taking care of her," Sarah cried as more tears fell from her eyes.

"My pleasure."

Curiously eager now, she met Jareth's eyes questioning, "When will you bring her to me?"

Then before Jareth had a chance to reply, Sarah's eyes widen with fear, "You are going to let me have her back? I'll go through the labyrinth again if I have to." Sarah's fearful words alerted Toby's alarm and he started to close in from behind on Jareth.


	9. Chapter 9

The Tragedy

Chapter 9

* * *

From behind Jareth, Toby's icy voice came, "Is that the real reason you did not want to go get Mary Elizabeth?"

Jareth flipped around to see Toby standing inches from him ready to seize hold of him.

Sarah's heart felt like it had frozen inside of her as she gripped tighter to the crystal as if it were Mary Elizabeth she was trying to hold on to. "Jareth, please…,"she begged with pure misery in her voice.

Quickly turning back to desperate-eyed Sarah, Jareth hands went up and down in a calming motion gently consoling her, "Fear not Sarah. I promise I will bring her to you."

Relaxing, Sarah sat back against her pillow and started urging Jareth's response to her previous question, "When? Can you go get her right now?"

"Well, I've been thinking about that. I don't think I should bring her straight to the hospital."

Toby glowered, "What's there to think about? Go get her."

Annoyed at his accusations and impatience, Jareth returned Toby glared before settling into a composed expression. "Be reasonable, it's not smart for me just arrive here with her. How would I, we, explain that to the police? I can see it now, 'Well, Officer it just happened that an old friend found her.' Sorry, but that's not believable. And, we certainly cannot tell them how she was actually found now can we? I don't think they will believe in goblins or a Goblin King."

"I guess he's right," Toby muttered grimly.

"Take me to her then, to the Underground," Sarah implored attempting to get out of the bed.

The two males admonished her in unison, "Noooo!"

"Sarah, you cannot leave the hospital. You are not fit to leave."

"I agree with your brother. I am not taking you anywhere. You will stay here and we will manage to get Mary Elizabeth to you. Now stay in that bed, if you want me to bring her here."

"I'll be okay."

Jareth glared at her and she realized he was unwavering in his decision.

She fell back into the bed scowling to express her annoyance. She felt like a stubborn child being scolded by parents, yet she was the only one with a child. She guessed Jareth didn't have any children.

"Fine! But Jareth, how…" Jareth cut Sarah off before she could finish.

"Simple, I will find out where exactly Tog and his group found her, and then I will take her to the police station closest to that area. I will claim I found her and describe where so that it might help with the investigation. Then, being your next of kin, they should allow Toby to have her. Will that be okay with you Sarah? I think it is the best option we have."

"I guess, but could you please hurry. I really need to have her back in my arms."

"Of course, Sarah," he gently replied, "And, if it helps, I'll leave the crystal with you so you can continue to watch her. Just be careful that no one else sees it."

Sarah nodded understanding what Jareth meant. She did not want to even try to explain the crystal to others.

Jareth told Toby to be ready for the phone call and was preparing to transport himself back to the Underground when Sarah stopped him.

"Jareth."

Jareth glanced at Sarah whose face revealed a new found appreciation for him. "Thank you," was all she whispered.

Jareth responded, a smile spreading across his lips, "My pleasure, my dear," bowing his head in her direction as his disappeared.

"Well that was strangely formal and unnecessary," Toby judged criticizing this man, no, creature that he still did not know much about.

Peeved at her brother's thoughtlessness, Sarah scolded, "Don't be so harsh. After what he's done, you shouldn't."

"It's probably just part of his ways, his customs," Sarah noted as her mind drifted away for just a minute to a memory of the ballroom we she and Jareth had danced. She remembered feeling like she was in a different time, a time where men were bound to a gentlemen's conduct.

"Now go ahead to my house. Look in my car and get the other car seat. I'm now glad David insisted on getting one for each vehicle instead of just sharing one. You'll need the car seat when you pick up Mary Elizabeth," Sarah ordered as she focused her attention on the crystal ball just in time to notice Jareth arriving back at his castle.

Toby parted the room and headed for Sarah's house.

At Jareth's arrival, Hoggle urgently beseeched his knowledge of Sarah, "Did you find Sarah? Is she okay?"

Esteem for the little dwarf's concern over his friend prompted Jareth's speedy explanation of what happened and observation of Sarah's condition.

Horrified Hoggle furrowed his brow muttering curses at the men before requesting, "What's to happen now?"

Carefully sweeping Mary Elizabeth up from where she had been playing with some kind of rattle that Hoggle must have fashioned for her, Jareth informed him, "Getting Mary Elizabeth back to her mother."

Hoggle hesitated, "Of course, but I, um, I mean about the men."

Aware that Sarah was probably observing Jareth pressed in a low voice, "That job is for the police in Sarah's world. It is not my place."

Hoggle eyed him suspiciously certain this could not be his true intentions.

"Tell Sarah I'm sorry and if she needs me…," Hoggle trailed off.

"Sure, sure," Jareth curtly agreed growing impatient with the conversion. He then sent Hoggle to find Tog and his group of goblins.

Beaming at Mary Elizabeth, Jareth cooed, "Soon, you will be with your mother again." Reaching down he picked up the make-shift rattle shaking it for Mary Elizabeth's amusement.

Sarah observed the scene with delight surprised by Jareth's tenderness.

A short while later Tog showed up to direct Jareth to the location where Mary Elizabeth was found. Jareth went to the location first to be certain he was accurately able to describe the location. He was only somewhat surprised to be in another city than Sarah's home. Surely the animals wanted to distance themselves from the scene of the crime he decided.

Before emerging from the alleyway, Jareth magically transformed his looks and clothes to look like a poor homeless person off the street who couldn't even afford a meal. He made his white blond hair turn brown and made it appear long, unkempt, and dirty. His clothes he made look worn and filthy. He did not want the police to recognize him later if they came to the hospital and he was there. Also, he figured it was probably harder to track down a homeless man if the police decided they had more questions for him.

It didn't take long for Jareth to find the nearest police station and give them his story. A short time later, Officer Turney had been contacted and in turned contacted Toby. Then, Toby was off on his way to pick up Mary Elizabeth.


	10. Chapter 10

The Tragedy

Chapter 10

* * *

When Toby arrived at the police station, the officer in charge, Officer Marshal, was still interrogating Jareth, who considered it a great annoyance. He felt like he had already answered these questions several times and was tempted to make a distraction so he could just vanish. However, he really did not want to leave until Toby was there for Mary Elizabeth.

Toby approached the front desk explaining who he was and why he was there. He was then escorted to the proper section.

Upon arriving at that section, Officer Marshal broke off his investigation of Jareth to address Toby bringing him Mary Elizabeth in the process. Not recognizing Jareth, Toby was startled when the officer explained that this homeless man in front of him had brought his niece to the station. He could not believe and was enraged that Jareth had ensured the safety of Mary Elizabeth to some stranger off the street. However, he graciously thanked the man, who made no indication to Toby that he was Jareth, before filling out some necessary paperwork and departing.

Jareth did not allow himself to be detained much longer after that. When the officer's back was turned, he threw a crystal he had formed into a trash can on the far side of the room causing it to burst into flames. In the officer's rush to get a fire extinguisher, he did not notice Jareth disappearing. When he did note the absence, he sent others to find him believing that the fire had frightened the poor hero.

In a secluded section near the hospital, Jareth reappeared dressed in the same modern fashion from earlier that day. He headed to Sarah's room aware that Toby would still have quite a drive before arriving with the Mary Elizabeth.

After giving permission for the person who had knocked on her door to come in, Sarah was shocked to see Jareth walk in.

Having observe Jareth transform into the homeless persona, Sarah inquired, "What are you doing here? I, um, mean so fast. Weren't you still at the police station when Toby left and he's not even close to being back yet?"

With a little smirk plastered on his face, "My form of travel is a lot faster than Toby's, although, it would be interesting to ride in one of those things, I think you called them cars, at some point."

"Oh, yeah, that's right, I forgot," Sarah blustered at her stupidity of not thinking about Jareth's ability to just transfer from one place to another in a matter of seconds.

The two former foes just stared at random areas of the room in an awkward silence neither sure what to say for a while until Sarah requested, "Please have a seat," gesturing to the chair Toby had slept in the night before.

Jareth replied, "Thank you," as he sat down. "Forgive me Sarah, but I also forgot Hoggle sent his regards to you."

Sarah smiled, "At least you remembered that's what counts. Tell Hoggle I said, 'Thank you, he is a true friend and that I've missed him.' Maybe once I'm better... They can still visit, can't they? Or, maybe I can visit them if it alright with you."

"You are always welcomed in the Underground, my dear. All you need is to call my name. I will come to you to bring you there. And, of course, you can still summon the others to your world. By the way, why did you ever stop?"

Not wanting to go into details about losing her parents and having to raise Toby, she hedged, "Um, I guess in growing up, I just forgot to let myself need them anymore." She hoped Jareth would not press the issue.

Realizing from her voice that Sarah apparently did not want to talk about something, Jareth nodded, "Well, they'll be happy to hear from you anyway. I know Hoggle especially will. He was really concerned about you when I went back to get Mary Elizabeth."

"Yes I know, I was watching," Sarah held up the crystal before continuing, "He might normally act like he doesn't, but he's got a good heart. By the way, can I ask you something before Toby gets here?"

"Anything, my dear, I am at your mercy."

Tilting her head in frustration at his recent statement, she requested, "Please, don't."

"Don't what?" Jareth drew his brows together in confusion at what Sarah was meaning.

"Please don't say things like 'I am at your mercy.' It makes me uncomfortable," she grimaced.

"Okay, but please explain to me why it makes you uncomfortable. I don't understand why you object so to it."

"Well, I just…it's hard to explain."

"Try," Jareth begged with his eyes.

"I guess I just feel as if you are placing me on a pedestal or like you are about to fall at my feet," Sarah answered biting her lips.

Smirking with smoldering glance Jareth teased, "Well, maybe I will just throw myself at your feet, my beautiful Sarah."

Sarah glowered, "Jareth, please be serious. I can understand that certain expressions are probably just a part of who you are, but please don't go too far with them like you just did. I can't stand it especially not right now. It's just too soon." Sarah was clearly saddened by what she just had to say, saddened not only for her husband's loss, but for her response to Jareth. She knew she had probably hurt his feelings with her rebuff of his ways, but it was too soon for her to accept any kind of flattery from another man.

Noticing Sarah's countenance Jareth felt a wave of guilt wash over him. He had forgotten about her recently departed husband and how his little affirmations of his feelings for her and what he was willing to do for her must make her feel. He looked upon her with sorrow in his eyes before speaking.

"Please, accept my apology, Sarah. I promise I will make an effort not to use phrases that make you uncomfortable. However, I may make some mistakes for my language has been ingrained in me for some time now, enough that I rather not state exactly how old I am," he stated changing his expression to a slight grin at the last part.

"I can deal with that. Thanks."

"You welcome, my dear. Um, is saying my dear too much for you?"

"No, that's okay. I'm use to it already."

"Now, that we've deal with your request, why don't you just relax. You'll need your energy for your reunion with your daughter."

Dismissing his concern, she replied, "Oh, I have plenty of energy right now, probably my eagerness to see her. Plus, that wasn't my question."

Jareth raised an eyebrow, "It wasn't?"

"No, I got sidetracked by your words."

"Oh," Jareth uttered. "What was your question then?"

With an earnest look of a lack of understanding, Sarah asked, "Why are you being so nice to me?"

Honestly confused by her question, Jareth just stared before wanting to know, "What do you mean, Sarah? I know you thought I was uncaring and unfair in the past, but I never intended to be truly cruel. I was just trying to do what you asked. And now, I just wanted to help you and your child."

Shocking him, Sarah busted out almost in tears, "That's exactly what I mean. Why are you being so kind after the why I acted towards you? I was cruel the way I took everything you did for granted and the way I thought, and continued to believe up until today, that you were the heartless one."

Laying his hands on hers, in a soothing voice Jareth acknowledged, "We both did and said things we shouldn't have. Let's just let the past be just that, the past."

With tears now in her eyes, she agreed, "Yes, let us let the past be the past."


	11. Chapter 11

The Tragedy

Chapter 11

* * *

Until Toby arrived, Sarah and Jareth talked about random things. Sarah was interested to know exactly how her friends from the labyrinth were doing and to her dismay Jareth couldn't tell her much other than Hoggle was doing the same tasks he always did such as exterminating the fairies, Sir Didymus was still guarded the bridge, and Ludo was now making more friends by helping to build walls using his other friends, the rocks.

As they were discussing Ludo, Toby entered the room carrying little Mary Elizabeth securely in his arms.

Sarah's face lit up holding her arms out for the child. "Mary Elizabeth."

As Toby gently placed the child in his sister's arms, he casted a quick glare at Jareth before the doctor walked in. Warmth surrounded the doctor's voice when he addressed Sarah, who was tenderly holding Mary Elizabeth close to her like she would never let her go.

"Mrs. Wilson, I have cleared permission for your baby to be in here, but only for a few hours each day. I think that seeing her will be good for you. However, I am afraid that you will use too much of your energy and probably strain yourself to take care of her if I allow her to stay too long during the day. Do you understand?"

Not thrilled about being limited to the time she had with her daughter, she nodded, "Yes, I can deal with that if I must. Thank you for at least allowing her in here."

"You're welcome. I must see to other patients now. I'll come by to check on you later. Good day," the doctor responded before quitting the room.

Sarah was cooing to her daughter about how much she missed her and how she was glad to have her back, while Jareth and Toby watched the scene with a heart-felt feeling.

Jareth broke the silence, "I've never seen anything so beautiful before. You love her so much. I'm glad I was able to reunite the two of you."

Sarah smiled never taking her eyes off Mary Elizabeth, "So, am I."

Toby watched this exchange and it fueled his anger that Sarah was apparently unaware that Jareth would trust a complete stranger off the street with her child. Not wanting to upset his sister, he just stole another fierce glance towards Jareth.

Jareth was not unaware of these angry looks Toby was sending him and thought it was best to go ahead and address them before it became a bigger issue.

"May I asked, why you keep look at me so angrily for?"

"I rather not upset my sister at this time. She just got back her daughter."

Sarah glanced up the tension of these words between the two men. "Toby, if there is a problem, please go ahead and say what it is. I'll be fine."

"No, no, it's nothing to worry about."

"Toby," Sarah commanded with her voice and eyes as she stared at her younger brother that she had raised for the fourteen years since their parents had passed away. Toby knew this look and knew that Sarah would not halt until she found out what was on his mind.

"Fine! It's just you are acting so grateful to him, but he left Mary Elizabeth alone with some homeless man off the street that he couldn't know anything about. The man could have been dangerous." His eyes shined with fury as he explained this to Sarah then fixed his glaze on Jareth.

Jareth returned Toby's look with a stern expression, "The homeless man was me, boy. I would never do anything to endanger that child."

"Really? I don't believe you."

Sarah blunted in, "Toby, he's telling the truth. I had the crystal watching the entire time." Turning to Jareth, she questioned, "By the way, why did you make yourself look that way?"

Toby's apology was followed by Jareth's explanation of not wanting to be found or recognized by the police especially if they came to the hospital.

"That is, if you will allow me to continue to visit. I would like to, at least, until you are better," he implored.

Sarah eyes widen in disbelief that he would even think she would send him away after all that had happened. "I can't believe you are asking me that. Of course, you are welcome to come especially after everything you have done for me and my baby."

After that, the three of them had a nice visit until the doctor came in to remind them of the time.

"Mrs. Wilson, I'm sorry, but it's been three hours," the doctor reminded, "I'll give you a few more minutes to say goodbye." He then stepped back out of the room.

Toby faced Sarah, "I'll go by your place, pick up some of her things, and then take her back to my apartment."

Her face dropped as she said goodbye to her daughter promising to see her the next day when her Uncle Toby brought her back to visit.

"Thank you Toby. I'm just not certain how you are going to handle starting college this week, working, and taking care of her. I wish there was some other way."

"It's okay, Sarah. I'll manage somehow. I guess when I get home, I need to start calling around for a babysitter for while I'm at work and attending classes."

Sarah frowned at this but didn't say anything knowing there was no other choice. It wasn't that she minded babysitters, but in this situation she dreaded having Mary Elizabeth to feel uncomfortable being left with someone unknown so soon after her father's death.

Silently listening to the conversion, Jareth came up with a suggestion, "Why don't I take care of her? I can keep her the whole time or just during the days if you rather Toby still keep her at nights. I'll bring her to you every day. It is clearly a wiser idea than Toby trying to juggle everything he needs to do. This way he can focus on his work and his studies."

Sarah carefully eyed Jareth, "I don't know about that? I know it would be better for Toby but are you sure? I don't want to inconvenience you anymore than I already have. You are a king with a kingdom to run. Aren't you also too busy to take care of a baby?"

"Worry not, Sarah. I would love to watch that precious child. And, if I have something in my kingdom requires my immediate attention, I am certain Hoggle would love to watch her. You saw how good he was with her."

Although she was still a little skeptical about the situation, she recalled observing how well both Jareth and Hoggle had been with her little girl. Also, it would definitely be more comforting to her than having an unfamiliar person taking care of Mary Elizabeth when Toby couldn't.

Concerned over Toby's feelings about the situation, Sarah asked, "Toby, how do you felt about it? I mean I don't want you to feel like you have to agree to this if you rather keep her. I still would rather Jareth care for her when you can't over calling a babysitter. "

Surprised by his own words, Toby found that he was willing agreeing to the plan actually grateful to Jareth for being able to watch Mary Elizabeth, "Well, I guess, it would be for the best for everyone. I've already missed a couple of my shifts and I hate to say it but I don't know if I could handle everything."

Turning towards Jareth, "I love my niece dearly and would have done my best to manage, but I am appreciative that you are willing to look after her. So she won't have to be shuffled around so much, I think it would be better if you take her the whole time."

Jareth nodded, "I know this is probably hard for you. As Sarah already knows, if you need to speak to me or just want to check on your niece, just call out my name."

Addressing Sarah, Jareth commented, "I will continue to leave the crystal with you, just remember to be careful with it."

"Thank you," Sarah replied as she regretfully handed her child to Jareth, "I love you Mary Elizabeth."

Jareth smiled, "We will see you tomorrow. Rest well." He disappeared.

Toby parted leaving Sarah to rest. Although, she felt like Jareth would take good care of her daughter, something was still bothering her as she laid her head down.


	12. Chapter 12

The Tragedy

Chapter 12

Sarah tossed and turned in her bed most of the night unable to put her mind at ease. Through her mind flowed the events of the past two days and worries of the future. She thought about Toby starting college and how he would handle it. She had raised him and guided him for so long that it was hard to let him go forth on his. However, she knew she would have to especially now that she would have to raise her own daughter as a single mother.

She also thought about Jareth and wondered at the amazement of the change that had come between. She would have never believed seventeen years that the man she feared and hated for taking Toby as a result of her own stupid wish would be the same man that she now had the greatest esteem for, the man that had come to her rescue in her greatest time of need.

Her daughter was the chief subject on her mind, how Mary Elizabeth would adjust to the heartbreak of never seeing her father's face again, never hearing his voice again, and never feeling his arms holding her again. At these thoughts she could not suppress her tears anymore because it made her think of the one thing she had been trying to keep out of her mind…David.

She did not want to think of her loss of her never seeing his face again, of her never hearing his voice again, and of her never feeling his arms holding her again. As she thought of this, she wondered if Mary Elizabeth would even remember these things. She was so young that Sarah feared that she would probably not. As for Sarah, she knew she would never forget these things.

As the tears continue to flow down her face, she squeezed her eyes shut trying to desperately to block the one other memory she knew she would never forget. She knew she would never be able to put out of her mind seeing David shot his body crumpling to the ground.

Trying to distract herself from the horrid thoughts, Sarah grabbed for the crystal ball from the drawer of the nightstand near her hospital bed. She wondered how Mary Elizabeth was doing. She hoped for both Jareth's and Mary Elizabeth's sakes that Mary Elizabeth was handling the situation of not having her parents around and being in a strange place well enough to sleep through the night. Mary Elizabeth had just recently started sleeping consistently through the whole night about a month before and Sarah really hoped that her little one would not become fussy and keep Jareth up half the night.

Looking at the picture in the crystal, she saw a little wooden crib that could be rocked side to side. Her baby was curled up comfortably underneath a little pink blanket fast asleep. This brought a smile to her face.

What she also noticed almost made her blush over the embarrassment of observing but also filled her heart with warmth and further amazement at this new Jareth she was discovering. Mary Elizabeth's crib was in Jareth's bedroom pulled up right beside Jareth's bed. Jareth was asleep as well. He was on his stomach with one arm hanging off the edge of the bed near the crib like he had been rocking the crib until he fell asleep.

Feeling like she was now intruding on Jareth by watching him sleep, she promptly placed the crystal back in the drawer. She wondered what could have possibly have been bugging her earlier about Jareth taking care of Mary Elizabeth. She knew that there was no reason to be worried for she could see that Jareth was doing a wonderful job. The only thing she could reason was that it was a result of all of her other worries. As a result, she put that thought out of her mind.

Eventually, Sarah was able to drift off to sleep. In her sleep, she started dreaming. She found herself walking down a dark lonely winding road searching for something. She did not know what she was searching for but knew she could not stop until she found it. As she continued to walk, she noticed two cars in the distance near a turn. As she drew nearer, she recognized the cars. She knew what was up ahead. She dreaded it. She tried to stop, she wanted to stop, but she couldn't. She did not want to go there but her feet just keep moving in that direction.

Suddenly Jareth appeared before her dressed in the black leather outfit with a cape that she had first met him in. At seeing him blocking her path, her feet came to a halt. His white blond hair was blowing in the wind as he warned her, "Turn back Sarah. Turn back before it's too late." She realized that his warning was the same warning from years ago. However this time, unlike the last, she wanted to turn back, to turn away from what she knew she would see. Therefore at his warning, she turned around heading in the other direction.

After a while, the road ahead starting turning from black pavement to a light brown stone and the tree lining the sides of the highway followed suit. As Sarah came to set of stairs leading upwards, she recognized where she was. She was back in Jareth's castle. She was in the confusing Escher-like room with all the stairs leading in all different directions. The room where she had seen Toby and tried to reach him but never could. As she looked around, she searched for Toby feeling like that was who she must have been searching for earlier.

Finally, she spotted him on a set of stairs that was upside down above her head. She started racing after him just like she had several years ago. However, every time she had to look for him she noticed a small change each time starting with his outfit until at last even his face changed. It was no longer Toby she was searching for, it was now Mary Elizabeth she was rushing to get to. Upon seeing Mary Elizabeth sitting on an edge above a long drop just like Toby had been those years before, Sarah repeated her long jump off the ledge trying to reach her daughter.

Her fall was no different from before and she expected to land where she had before in the room with the broken stones floating around. She wondered if Jareth would be there dressed in his white outfit and feathers like the last time. She had lived this before, but could not understand why she was reliving it in her dreams. She had made peace with Jareth and Jareth was not trying to keep her daughter from her, so why?

When her feet finally found the floor, she was not where she thought she would be. Instead, she found herself standing in Jareth's throne room. Jareth was there sitting on his throne looking bored staring off in a distant corner of the room dressed in a white shirt with loose billowing sleeves, a black vest, gray leggings, and black boots.

As Sarah cautiously walked towards him, he slowly turned his head to look at her and smiled, "Why hello Sarah, what are you looking for?"

Sarah just stared at him for a minute like she was confused before replying, "Mary Elizabeth, where is she? She's here, right?"

Jareth nodded, "Yes, she's over there," he stated pointing into the corner he had just been staring at.

Sarah turned around to look at where Jareth pointed. She saw nothing but goblins. She turned back to Jareth, "Where is she? I don't see her."

"Look closer, my dear. She is there."

When Sarah rotated back towards the group of goblins, panic suddenly seized her heart as she noticed a baby goblin crawling about in the mist of them. The goblin babe looked up at her and said, "Mama."

Sarah woke up screaming "Nooo…" at the top of her lungs sending nurses to racing into her room.


	13. Chapter 13

The Tragedy

Chapter 13

* * *

"Mrs. Wilson, are you okay? Are you in pain?"

"Do I need to get a sedative for her?"

"No wait for now, she seems to be calming down. Mrs. Wilson?"

Still wide eyed from her panic, Sarah looked around the room seeing for the first time the concerns faces of the nurses watching her every move.

"Um…I'm okay."

"Are you sure Mrs. Wilson? You were screaming so loud. Are you sure you are not in pain?"

"No, no, I'm fine. It was just a terrible nightmare. I'm sorry for worrying everyone," Sarah replied looking apologetically at the nurse.

The nurse nodded, "Well, considering what you have been through that is perfectly understandable. If you need to speak to someone, just let us know and we came get someone to come up help you."

"Thank you, but that won't be necessary."

"Okay then, try to get some rest. I'll see you later," the nurse smiled.

Looking at the window, Sarah noticed light coming in between the shades at the window.

Stopping the nurse, she asked, "What time is it?"

"It's about six-thirty."

Sarah nodded, "While you're in here, can I ask you to do me a favor?"

"Of course. What is it?"

"In my bag in the closet is a little red book that my brother packed for me. Could you get it out and hand it to me?"

The nurse went to the closet and rummaged through Sarah's bag until she found the book. Sarah was glad that she had ask Toby to pack this book not knowing at the time that Jareth would even come back to being a part of her life.

"Thank you," Sarah said smiling graciously at the nurse.

"You're welcome. Hey, it's also time for visiting hours. Maybe someone will bring Mary Elizabeth by soon," the nurse replied trying to give this poor woman something to further brighten her spirits.

Sarah plastered a smiled on, "Oh, he will."

As the nurses were leaving, Sarah muttered under her breath, "He better for I have something to discuss with him if I am remembering that passage correctly."

Sarah impatiently started flipping pages in _The Labyrinth_. She wanted to summon Jareth right away but did not want anyone seeing him here before visiting hours and possibly taking away the permission of allowing Mary Elizabeth to be brought in. Finally, she found the area of the book she was looking for.

Reading out loud, "and any child that stays in the Goblin King's kingdom will become one of the goblins," Sarah clutched the book tighter.

_No, this cannot be happening. What have I done by allowing him to take her there?_ Sarah thoughts raced as she glanced quickly at the clock on the nightstand. It was still about ten minutes till seven o'clock when visiting hours started. She decided that no one would say much about ten minutes, she hoped for she could wait no longer.

Jareth was just getting Mary Elizabeth changed and ready to go visit Sarah figuring that she would probably want to see her as early as possible today after just getting her back yesterday when he suddenly heard Sarah's voice hiss, "Jareth, come now. We need to discuss something. Have Mary Elizabeth with you."

Jareth wondered why Sarah's voiced sounded so stressed and why she sounded like she was upset with him over something. He scooped Mary Elizabeth cooing, "Let's go see your mommy."

Jareth arrived outside the hospital and walked in to keep up appearances. When he opened Sarah's door, her eyes sternly bore into his eyes, as she said, "Hand me my child."

Taken back by Sarah's sudden rudeness, he did as requested, but questioned, "What the matter, Sarah? It's something wrong?"

"You tried to trick me. I will not let you turn her into a goblin!" Sarah glared at him clutching Mary Elizabeth to her chest.

Stunned at these words not understanding what Sarah could possibly be talking about, Jareth just stood there for a minute dazed. "What are you talking about Sarah? I would never do that! I can't do that!"

"Don't tell me that! Here, read the third paragraph on the left page. Then, try to tell me I'm wrong!" Sarah shoved the little red book into his hands.

Jareth grabbed the book and read the section Sarah had demanded. Upon reading the section, sudden understanding occurred.

Not able to help himself, Jareth dropped the book to his side throwing his head back letting out an exuberant laugh.

"What's so funny?" Sarah sneered.

Looking apologetically Jareth replied, "I'm sorry Sarah, but I can't believe that you would actually believe this. This is just a book."

Unrelenting, Sarah pursued, "It's how I learned about you, isn't it?"

Jareth bobbed his head slightly, "I guess it was, but think about it Sarah. How much could this writer really know about the Underground? She was probably a woman who had wished away a child and I gave a second chance to her by allowing her to try to complete the labyrinth. She probably saw several of the goblins running around the labyrinth in their childish antics and just assumed."

Still reluctant to disbelieve the book she knew so well over the word of someone who had tricked her in the past. She still remembered how he had used her words against her to take time away from the clock and what had happen after eating that peach.

She stated, "I guess that could be true, but how can I know you're not lying to me and she's not right?"

"Good point, Sarah. However, children that remain in my kingdom stay human and grow up just like any human child. You remember the ball? They were there. They just tend to live outside the labyrinth. Plus, like I said before I can't change a human child into a goblin because I simply don't have that kind of power. Not that I would even if I could."

"I remember the ball. I'm sorry, I guess I overreacted. My concern as a mother is my only reasonable excuse. Please forgive me." Sarah dropped her eyes her cheeks flushed with embarrassment by her mistaken accusation after everything Jareth had recently done for her.

Jareth gently put his hand under Sarah's chin tilting her face up so her eyes met his, he smiled his eyes voicing the depth of what he was saying, "It's okay Sarah. I understand. You've been under a lot of stress in the past few days. If you ever have questions never hesitate to ask them. I rather you be knowledgeable about the truth than worry about a misbelief."

Stilling staring into Jareth's eyes, Sarah spoke concern in her voice, "Thank you. Can I ask you about the children you take? There were just so many at the ball. You've taken that many? Why?"

Jareth gave Sarah a gentle but sad smile, "Yes, I've taken several and my goblins have also found several abandon children. I take in all the unloved children that come my way. However, not all of them were these children, but children of those children."

Sarah's eyes pleaded with his, "I know you are just doing what they ask, just like when I asked you to take Toby and the abandon ones I can certainly understand, but what if someone makes a mistake like I did and didn't mean it? I mean do you let everyone try to solve the labyrinth in an effort to get the children back?"

"They all get the same option you did my dear and apparently the writer of this book did", he said tossing the book on the nightstand before continuing, "However, most give up as soon as they see the labyrinth and even more after less than an hour especially those that can't even figure out how to get into the labyrinth. You are the only one the labyrinth has ever found worthy enough to find the castle. Some of that probably had to do with befriending creatures of the labyrinth. No one else ever did that before. Some would speak to them but that was all."

"But, did you try to detain them just as you did me?"

Shaking his head, Jareth deny this, "No, my dear. I just wanted to spend more time with you. You are the only one I have ever fallen for. Actually, I fell for you even before you wished Toby away. I was there in the park that day as an owl watching you."

Sarah blushed, "Um…Jareth please…"

Remembering his earlier promise, Jareth quickly inserted before Sarah could finish, "I'm sorry Sarah. I got carried away again. Let's change the subject. Is there anything else you would like to ask?"

Confusion crossed her face as she blurted out, "Now that you mention it, yes. You said I was the only one to ever get to the castle. Then, how did the writer know about the rest like the Goblin City and what needed to be said to defeat you? I believe what you have said, but I don't understand how she could know if she never got that far."

Jareth stood dumbfounded, "I…I don't know."


	14. Chapter 14

The Tragedy

Chapter 14

Okay this chapter may be a little wordy. Sorry about that.

* * *

"Jareth? Jareth?" Sarah repeated fervently in an attempt to get his attention. "Snap out of it!"

Since it was still difficult for her to get out of bed especially with having Mary Elizabeth on her lap, she was almost tempted to pick up the empty plastic cup off the table and toss it at him to wake him out of his trance. He had been standing like a stone for the past five minutes since Sarah asked her question. She was beginning to worry at his non-response.

"Jareth, it doesn't matter about the book. I don't care anymore. It's not important. Just say something!" Worry shone from her eyes as she waited for some response.

Jareth finally shook his head giving Sarah a meaningful stare. "No, Sarah, it is important. Not only for you, but for me. We _both_ need to know where this book came from," he stated passionately emphasizing the word both so that Sarah realized the answer was just as important to him as it was to her."

"Somehow, somewhere, someone knew about your brother, about you, about me, and about what would happen. That is the only plausible explanation. But how? Who?"

He swiftly swiped the book back up from where he had tossed it and rapidly flipped pages as Sarah stared in wonderment of what he had just suggested.

"But how would anyone know that? It's not possible. I had that book for years before that happened."

Annoyed at Jareth's ignorance of her musings while he continued to flip pages she questioned bitterly, "What are you looking for?"

Jareth looked up frustrated, "I can't find what it. I don't understand. This is getting stranger by the minute."

Sarah continued to stare at him confused by his odd reaction. "What are you talking about? What can't you find?"

"The author's name, the publishing company, any information about where this book came from. Even in my world there is always an author's name. Although it happens, there is hardly ever something published as anonymous and even if that is so it is usually stated as such," he answered befuddled by not finding the information he sought.

Shifting Mary Elizabeth's weight, she reached for the book in Jareth's hand saying, "Hand it here. You just must be looking in the wrong place."

He moved the book to within her reach surrendering it to her grasp.

Sarah fanned through the page but failed to find the information where it should normally be located.

"There's nothing here. Not even copyright information. All this time and I never realized it. How could I have read this book so many times that I practically have it memorized and in no way have never noticed this?" Sarah wrinkled her forehead in disturbance at her utter unawareness of this issue.

"Because you were more interested in the story itself," Jareth grinned taking the book from her hand, "Not that I could blame you. It is a very interesting story, if I do say so myself. After all, it is about us."

He winked hoping he was not crossing the boundary line of her comfort zone.

Sarah just smiled playful rolling her eyes at his commentary. "Yeah it's a great story. I just think the Goblin King is a little too full of himself."

"Really?" Jareth raised his eyebrow in a disbelieving look, "It that really what you think? I don't think so. You really misunderstood that character you know. He's just uses his show of confidence to overshadow his worries, so I think." Jareth smirked.

Nodding perceptive that in Jareth's words was a truth about him, a personality flaw he was openly revealing to her, Sarah replied admitting her own truth, "Well, maybe I did. I think I'm starting to understand him a lot better these days."

He beamed at her words, "I'm glad." He returned his attention back to the matter at hand.

Shaking the book back and forth in his hand, "Now the important thing it to find out as much about this book as possible."

Just then an idea occurred to him.

"Sarah, do you think the doctor would say anything if I left Mary Elizabeth alone with you for about ten minutes if even that long."

"I don't know. Why do you ask?"

"Because I need to go somewhere real quick."

"Where?"

"I'll answer all your questions when I get back. I just don't want someone to come in and get upset that I left her here unaccompanied."

Sarah glanced towards her bathroom door. "Why don't you go in the bathroom, locked the door, and come and go from there? If someone comes in and asks, I can just tell them you are in the bathroom. They can't get mad over that."

"Now why didn't I think about that?" Jareth said in a humorous tone.

"See you in a bit, my dear," Jareth commented as he disappeared into the bathroom with the book still in hand.

Although curious at where he was going, Sarah occupied herself by enjoying the first moments in days that she had be able to spend time by herself with her daughter.

Jareth magically went to the one of the biggest libraries in the area. He walked to the front desk flashing a dazzling smile at the middle-aged female librarian.

Laying the charm on a little thick he requested, "Hello, beautiful. I was wondering, could you help me?"

The librarian stumbled over her words seemingly dazed, "Why, of course, sir, how can I be of service?"

Still smiling, he held up the red leather bound pages, "This book belongs to a friend of mine. We are trying to find out who wrote it, but there does not seem to be any information about the author, the year it was published, or the publisher. Could you possibly find this information out for me?"

"Of course," the librarian reached for the book making sure to accidently touch Jareth's hand in the process.

Jareth felt guilty about flirting so with the woman knowing that she was hoping for something that was not going to happen as he observed her type information into the computer. However, flirting seemed to always get the response he wanted from any female he had ever encountered except Sarah he realized with a sudden pang of desire.

Pulling her eyebrows together, she sounded disappointed that she could not help him, "I'm sorry sir but we do not even have that title in our system."

Jareth was dissatisfied with this and implored, "Is there any way you can find some type of information for me, please? It is very important."

She glanced up seeing his eyes watching her intently and murmured, "Well, let me just check the internet. It's odd that there is at least no ISBN number, but maybe I can find something."

Jareth was clueless as to what the librarian was speaking of but didn't care as long as she was continuing her search.

After a few more minutes the librarian went to hand the book back, "I'm so sorry sir but I cannot find anything at all about this book. There is absolutely no information about a book called _The Labyrinth_. It must have been published independently by a local is the only conclusion I can draw. The only problem is I have never heard of a company not putting their label on it even if it is just bound and cover for an individual."

"Well, thank you anyway," Jareth rotated away from the woman taking quick strides before she had chance to seek an opportunity of requesting some further research over a meal.

Seeing a men's restroom to the side, he duck inside and into one of the stalls just closing the door but not locking it.

Upon hearing the lock click, Sarah watched the door as Jareth emerged. "So, where did you go? What did you find out?"

After giving the baby a funny face followed by a gleeful expression at her reaction, Jareth plopped himself down in the recliner near the bed holding the book out in front of him.

"I went to a library to get a professional's help in finding the information we seek. Unfortunately, although she tried she could find nothing more using her resources and the internet than we could."

"That's odd," she replied.

"I know," Jareth eyed Sarah with curiosity and asked, "Where did you get this book? Where did you find it?"

A somber expression came across Sarah's face, "It belonged to my mother…," she choked. With as much pained that she had experienced in the past few days since was surprised at stabbing throb of her heart she felt recalling the loss of her mother. She hugged her baby closer aware of how close her daughter had come to losing her mother. Maybe that was why the emotions where hitting her so hard she realized.

Seeing the hurt on her face, Jareth took her hand holding it tight feeling how cool it was, "It's okay, never mind. I'm sorry I even asked. I didn't mean to bring up troubled memories. "

In Jareth's eyes, Sarah saw the unease at causing her any grief and it made her feel anxious. She really didn't know why but it did.

"No, it's fine. I actually would like to talk about my mother. She was an amazing woman. I just haven't…it's been such a long time…I was just taken by surprise is all. And the way I she received the book is actually an odd story in itself."

"If that's what you want Sarah. Just take your time and if you want to stop at any time, then just quit. I don't want you to press yourself," he glazed into her eyes stressing his words, "An odd story, eh? Well that seems fitting considering everything else."

Thinking upon this Sarah agreed, "Yeah, it does. Now my mother, she was an actress, a good one. One day the book just showed up in the mail with a letter asking her to read it and think about doing a play on it. I remember she was surprised that there was no return or forwarding address and no other contact information. The letter specifically stated that the person would contact her at a later date to see if she would be interested…"

Sarah took a slight pause before continuing.

"This made her extremely curious and upon reading the first few page she decided we should read it together. It was a mother daughter thing we often did. However, she died shortly there afterwards. That's why it was always so special to me."

Still holding her hand, Jareth gave it a slight squeeze. "I can only imagine. You must have been very close with her."

"I was. That's why it was so hard for me to accept Karen and then Toby." Sarah dropped her head ashamed at remembering how badly she had acted towards then before she had went to the Underground. Everything changed after that. She became extremely protective of Toby and eventually behaved better towards Karen.

Understanding her reaction, he replied, "But you did, that's what count."

In an attempt to distract her, he asked, "By the way, did anyone ever try to contact your house or anyone about the book or the play."

Sarah shrugged her shoulders, "No and I never thought about it. I was too distracted by my grief. And if it had passed through my thoughts, I would probably have just concluded that the person had heard about her death and didn't want to bother us."

"Of course, that would make sense," he condoled her.

He raised the red book, "Sarah do you mind if I keep this for a while. I promise to return it to you later."

Glancing at the book and back to him, "That will be fine, but why?"

"Because I not giving up on finding out where this book came from. We still need answers and I plan to find them. And for some reason, I have a feeling that those answers just might lie in the Underground."

"Nothing ever seemed to make sense there and this certainly doesn't seem to make sense so there seems like there would be a connection," Sarah shook her head recalling how confusing the place could be.

The corners of Jareth's lips curved upwards, "Yeah, you're right, it often doesn't. However, on the other hand, when you look even closer, it often makes even more sense than you could ever realize."

Sarah couldn't truly believe this. However, did not attempt to contradict him for he knew more about his world than she did.

They continued their visit chatting about meaningless subjects, Jareth never letting go of Sarah's hand. And Sarah made no move of trying to remove her hand from his enjoying the warmth of his touch.


	15. Chapter 15

The Tragedy

Chapter 15

* * *

First off to answer two questions from the reviews. As far as Sarah's mom being an actress part, if you look at the first part of the movie in Sarah's room after the camera pans past the books, the scrapebook has different clippings talking about a Linda Williams and stage kisses. Sarah also has mom written on it with a photo of her and her mother. As far as the dying part, I used a literary license there because from the clippings it actually looks like Sarah's mom must have left her dad for another actor. (Hmm, I am thinking of another story idea involving Sarah's mom now.)

* * *

A week passed by quickly. Jareth had started spacing out his visits bringing Mary Elizabeth three times a day for an hour at a time so it wasn't surprising when his and Toby's paths finally crossed one afternoon Toby stopped by after his classes.

"Hey there my little Miss Mary Mack," Toby grinned at seeing his niece on his sister's lap. He swooped down to place a quick peck on the cheeks of both his sibling and his niece.

"So how are you feeling today sis," Toby inquired upon sitting down.

Sarah beamed, "Great especially now that all three of you are here." As Jareth's smiled at Sarah's comment, Toby shot a wary glance in his direction.

"So how's school going," Sarah wanted to know. Toby told Sarah about his classes with Sarah asking several questions about what his professors were like, were there any cute girls he had noticed yet, etc.

Shortly thereafter Sarah's doctor walked in, "Sorry to interrupt your visit, but I need to check run some tests on the patient." Before anyone had a chance to talk, the doctor quickly added with a smile, "And if they come back okay which I expect them to, I think you boys can take her home this afternoon."

"Really," Sarah questioned as she hugged his daughter closer to her excited at the thought of going home with her daughter.

Giving her a serious face before breaking into a grin the doctor replied, "Now I wouldn't lie to my patients now would I?"

"That's great sis!" Toby was truly glad he stopped by now.

Jareth gave Sarah a gentle smile, "That's wonderful, I know you are really be at home where you can take care of Mary Elizabeth again." Although happy for Sarah, Jareth was also sort of sad on the inside afraid that these friendly little visits with Sarah may end.

A nurse rolled in with a wheelchair, "All right, who ordered curve service," she joked.

"I can walk," Sarah protested as both Jareth and Toby eyed their disapproval at her.

Giving a stern the look, the doctor stated, "Until you are release you use a wheelchair."

"Okay, okay, I understand," Sarah relinquished as she went to hand Mary Elizabeth towards Toby, "Here, I certain you want her since you haven't seen much of her lately."

"Of course I do," Toby replied carefully taking hold of his niece.

The nurse rolled the wheelchair over closer to the bed as Jareth scooted his chair back to make room before moving to the end of the bed out of the nurse's way. After lowering the bed and the side rail, the nurse began to help Sarah out of the bed.

After getting to her feet, Sarah wobbly legs gave way resulting in her falling forward out of the nurse's steadying hands. Sarah closed her eyes bracing for the impact of the floor as her knees collapsed.

"Sarah…," everyone hollered at once.

She never felt the floor as she slammed softly into a warm firm wall and was enveloped around her shoulders by strong arms.

"Are you okay, Sarah?"

Sarah sheepishly peered up into Jareth's apprehensive eyes relieved but incredibly uncomfortable by her body leaning onto his folded within the cradle of his arms. She blushed.

"I lost my balance is all. Thank you, Jareth," Sarah replied as she weakly tried to remove herself from his steady embrace.

Jareth released his hold slightly but would not let go completely until he had eased Sarah into the wheelchair.

"Don't scare us like that Mrs. Wilson," the doctor exhaled a breath before continuing, "Given you've not been on your feet much in the past week, your legs are probably a little weak right now. Good reason for the wheelchair I would say. And, if I let you go home today, allow someone to help you walk." The doctor eyed the two other men in the room to emphasize his meaning.

With the exception of Mary Elizabeth being in the room, when the doctor and the nurse departed with Sarah, it was the first time Jareth and Toby had been left alone together.

The two sat uncomfortably without conversion for several minutes before Jareth broke the silence.

"Toby, may I ask you about something?"

Toby's eyes drifted up from Mary Elizabeth whom he had playing with upon his lap, "I guess you may, what is it," Toby's voice sounded cautiously restrained.

Noting Toby's tone, Jareth retorted, "Well, you don't have to answer anything if you don't want to, but I do wonder what your problem with me is? I would have thought you were past wherever your concerns may have been. After all, you were fine with me watching your own niece."

Eying him, Toby inquired with an arch eyebrow, "Was that your question?"

"No, but I would like an answer to it anyway," Jareth demanded in a gruff voice irritated at Toby's continued aggravation towards him.

Sighing Toby replied, "Well, it's not you personally. I guess I should despise you for kidnapping me as a child, but considering everything I really cannot."

"So what's the reason then," Jareth interrupted.

"I guess I'm just overprotective. My sister and my niece are the only family I have left and I don't want either of them hurt."

A discerning expression crossed Jareth's face, "But, I wouldn't hurt them, you must know that by now."

Not on purpose you wouldn't, I don't think," Toby countered lowering his eyebrows his voice expressing just the slightest tinge of doubt. "However, I am worried that instead of grieving David like she should, she is slowly making you a substitute for that hole now left in her life and that eventfully the grief will surface causing everything to come crashing down around her."

Understanding the foundation for Toby's concern, Jareth nodded, "You have good reason to be troubled for I've only seen a small hint of Sarah grieving since I've been visiting her. It concerns me too. However, as far as filling that gap in her life, I think she only sees me as a friend and will continue to do so."

The final statement stung Jareth's heart and it was acutely apparent to Toby. He questioned, "But you want more don't you?"

Jareth looked Toby firmly in the eyes.

"Why do you think I took you? Why do you think I fought so hard to keep Sarah in the labyrinth? Why do you think I searched for Sarah when I found Mary Elizabeth? Of course I do! I have always wanted more since the first day I saw her walking in the park. I use to go there every day just to watch her. She was so beautiful and had such a warmth and spirit about her; I couldn't help falling for her. I wanted to just be near her. I loved her so much and still do," Jareth eyes glowed in remembrance before becoming gloomy, "However, I promised myself for her sake that I would never push her into anything she doesn't want or isn't ready for."

A dark shadow passed across Jareth's eyes as he uttered, "not again…"

Toby was flabbergasted at the passion this man felt for his sister. Toby felt ashamed for believing that even with as much as he knew David had loved Sarah that Jareth might love her even more.

"Not again? You mean because of what happened in the Underground." Toby knew the story well.

Raising his head slowly up and down in acknowledgement, Jareth replied, "Yes, I was selfish and foolish back then to think I could force and beg Sarah to love me and she made it clear that she didn't. That's why I believe that we can never be more than just friends. And that brings me to my actual question, why has no one else come to visit Sarah? Are her friends just trying to give her space to deal with everything?"

Toby looked saddened, "Sarah doesn't really have any friends. Oh, she has people she knows from places like work or around the neighborhood that she'll speak to when she sees them out, but no real friends."

"Why is that?" Jareth's voice rang with shock as he remembered how easy Sarah seem to make friends with the different creatures of that lived within the walls of the Underground.

"Well, I think that has to do with me," Toby looked miserably guilt ridden, "You see, when our parents died, Sarah was barely out of high school and placed all her dreams aside to work and support us. Between work and raising me, she didn't have any free time."

Taking a breath, Toby continued, "As I got older and realized this, I started asking more often to spend the night off at some friends' houses so she could have a night to herself, but she would rarely agree afraid that something bad might happen to me if I wasn't where she could easily reach me. Even when I became a teenager and got a job, she would always occupy her time either with extra shifts at work to put money away for my college or chores around the house so I would have to help as much. Sarah just never seemed to slow down."

"Sounds like Sarah was just as overprotective and overly concerned about you. I just hope that my taking you as a child didn't add to it," Jareth grimaced thinking that he might have given a extra reason for Sarah to cling so to Toby, "If Sarah never went out, then how did she get together with David?"

Toby smiled giving a sneaky look, "Well, let's just say that David was very persistent and had a little help from me. David moved in to the house beside us. He showed an immediate interest in Sarah, but other than being mannerly she wouldn't give him the time of day. She claimed to me that she didn't want to have an awkward situation with a neighbor in case things ended badly. Well, I started inviting David to supper and accepting invites for both of us over to David without asking Sarah first about either. Of, she would be polite, but was furious with me especially when I would conveniently forget I had to be somewhere else. They both knew what I was doing because David would give a knowing grin of amusement while Sarah would scowl at me. Eventfully, they became friends and then more."

"I really glad Sarah found someone," Jareth stated with honesty in his voice and in his heart just before the door opened and Sarah was wheeled in by the nurse.

"So, what's the verdict," Toby questioned.

The nurse grinned, "She's flying the coop!"

Sarah laughed, "That I am as soon as I get changed."

Jareth jumped up, "That's wonderful Sarah. I have something that I need to do. I'll see you at your house if that okay."

"Um, okay," Sarah replied.

"Good, I promise I won't be long. Probably will even beat you there, love," Jareth winked before disappearing out the doorway leaving both Sarah and Toby curious at what was so important to send him rushing out.


	16. Chapter 16

The Tragedy

Chapter 16

* * *

The nurse rolled Sarah out the sliding doors of the front entrance of the hospital to where Toby already had the car waiting with Mary Elizabeth strapped securely in her car seat. Sarah glanced in the back seat towards her daughter as the nurse and Toby helped her out of the wheelchair and into the car. Toby thanked the nurse, tossed Sarah's bag in the trunk, and climbed in the driver's seat.

"Ready to go home, sis," he teased, "Or, maybe you need a few more days here."

"Oh, stop being funny, squirt. Now, drive us home or else I'll put you in the hospital for a week and see how you like it. Got it, squirt?" Sarah scowled then grinned in jest at their playful banter.

She loved it and felt like it had been far too long since they had just acted like brother and sister. She knew most of that was her fault for always playing mother to him instead of being more like an older sister, but he had needed a mother figure too and she had graciously taken on that role. Now it was time to let go of that role unless Toby still needed her in that capacity at times and raise her own child.

As Toby shifted the car into drive and pulled off he grinned, "You haven't called me squirt in years."

"Well, it's about time again because there are moments where you can still be a little pipsqueak you know."

Their joking conversion continued until Toby pulled up into the driveway of Sarah's house cutting the engine off. Sarah looked up at the house both she and Toby had always known. Separated by fifteen years distance both siblings had grown up in this house.

Sarah's dad had originally brought this house when he had married her mother, which is what made her so mad as a teenager when Karen had moved in after the two of them were married. After Karen and her dad had died, Sarah could never seem to part with this house. It had been a struggle even with the life insurance money to maintain the bills, but she had been determined that she would not lose it. It was her home. It had become her and David's home, the place where they had planned to raise a family of their own.

Now, it would be just her and her daughter's. And although Toby no longer lived there it would always be his home too. She didn't doubt that.

Toby got Mary Elizabeth out of the back seat and headed to help Sarah out and up the stairs. Sarah had grasped Toby's hand and was pulling herself up and out of the vehicle when she noticed Jareth rushing out her house door and down the steps towards them.

"You know a normal person would have waited outside someone else's house when they don't even have a key to it," Sarah stated as Jareth neared slightly peeved that Jareth had gone in her house without her permission. When he said he might even beat her there she has assumed he would have waited outside.

Jareth smirked, "Whoever said I was normal, Sarah. You know by far that I am not."

"No you're definitely not," Sarah confirmed shaking her head from side to side slightly.

Facing Toby, Jareth said, "Let me take either take Mary Elizabeth or walk Sarah to the door. There's no need for you to struggle to do both."

"It's not a struggle, but thanks," Toby claimed, "However, you could get Sarah's bag out of the trunk."

Jareth snapped his fingers. "Done," he stated in an easy tone.

"Well, I meant the regular way or was that too hard for you?" Toby rolled his eyes at Jareth.

"Not really, but you could stop being so stubborn. It must be a family trait the two of you have in common," Jareth mused as he watched Toby struggle to handle the baby while supporting Sarah's weight, "Or, maybe it's just foolish pride."

"You know he's right," Sarah said in a breathless tone exhausted already by her still weakened state.

"Fine!" Toby fumed.

Jareth went straight to Sarah's side taking her arm pulling it around his neck and sliding his arm around her back. Sarah uncomfortably shifted her weight to leaning into his body removing her other arm from Toby's shoulders.

Toby walked ahead to the steps as Jareth helped Sarah along. After a few more steps, Sarah felt dizzy and asked, "Can we stop for a second?"

"What the matter, Sarah?" Jareth watched her intently.

Sarah's legs buckled pulling Jareth down slightly. He stooped down for a couple of seconds. And then, before Sarah could say anything, Jareth swept down catching behind her knees with his free arm pulling her up cradling her next to his torso.

"Now, no complaints, got it? You almost fell and I won't let that happen," Jareth declared in a firm tone looking straight into her eyes with an unbreakable stare.

Feeling helpless and silly, she just nodded and mumbled, "Okay."

Toby watched worry crossing his face, but didn't say anything as Jareth carried Sarah up the stairs and into the house following them until Jareth finally sit Sarah down on her feet in the living room.

Sarah looked around her house in surprise and wonderment, "You cleaned my house?"

A smile crossed Jareth's face, "Well, that wasn't my true intent, but when I saw all the dust, I remembered something Toby had said and decided to clean up for you."

Toby didn't know what to think as Sarah replied, "Thank you, but you didn't have to…"

Interrupting her Jareth admitted, "Well, I didn't do it alone. Some of your friends helped."

Sarah tilted her head towards him in confusion.

"Alright, everyone," Jareth called out.

Suddenly all sort of creatures popped out from places startling Toby who up until recently had thought they were just part of a story.

Sarah saw Ludo lumber out of a doorway that led from the kitchen, saying, "Sarraaahhhh."

She turned her head as she heard something barreling down the hallway stairs to see Sir Didymus riding Ambrosius down the steps. "Ah, Lady Sarah, it is good to see you again."

"You too, all of you," Sarah replied truly elated.

"Ello," Sarah rotated her view towards the voice to see the little worm that had helped her on the top of the couch with another worm beside him, "I like you to met the missus."

Sarah smiled, "Hello, I didn't get the pleasure last time."

The missus replied, "Ello, would you like some tea?"

"No thanks," Sarah replied.

Sarah was amazed that all these creatures, mostly goblins, were there, several that she didn't even remember meeting during her time spent in the labyrinth. However, as she looked around she was disappointed not to see Hoggle.

She looked up at Jareth who was still supporting her weight, "Where's Hoggle?"

Jareth looked puzzled, "I don't know. He was here earlier."

Just then Sarah heard something upstairs crash to the floor. She grinned before hollering up, "Hoggle, get out of my jewelry box and get down here. And I better not find anything missing!"

"Well, I wasn't planning on keeping anything," Hoggle complained as he stumbled down the stairs.

Jareth glared at Hoggle as Sarah laughed, "You never change do you, Hoggle."

"With as old as I am why should I," Hoggle muttered. "However, it's good to see Sarah doing well."

"Because you know better," Jareth stated.

"Oh, leave it be," Sarah shot a look at Jareth before speaking to Hoggle, "It's good to see you to. It's been far too long. Thank you for watching Mary Elizabeth."

"Ain't no problem, Sarah. Glad to do it. Mary Elizabeth's a good girl. I'd watched her more if Jareth would have let me, but no he wanted to have her most of the time," Hoggle produced the make-shift rattle he had made earlier shaking it for Mary Elizabeth.

Toby pulled away with Mary Elizabeth slightly before relaxing remembering that these beings were Sarah's friends.

Sarah moved to the couch with Jareth's help to have a seat. Jareth sit down beside her.

Toby left around nine that night to go home since he had an early class in the morning. Before leaving he had put a sleepy Mary Elizabeth in the crib in Sarah's room.

The homecoming celebration was great for Sarah's spirit but tiring.

When Jareth noticed her starting to doze off, he sent the creatures of his land home.

Careful not to wake her, he gently lifted her from the couch and carried her up the stairs.

He laid her in her bed pulling the covers carefully around her. He was tempted to magically change her into a nightgown but didn't want her to be upset in the morning thinking maybe he had changed her clothes the human way.

Jareth walked over to Mary Elizabeth's crib and smiled as he checked on her.

He walked lightly out of the room and across the hall into the room that had been Sarah's growing up. The room had been cleared out and turned into a study with a little desk and a computer.

There were several figurines and objects that seem resemble creatures or places of the labyrinth. Jareth remembered these had been a part of Sarah's room years ago and realized that apparently she must have never be able to part with them.

However, what surprised Jareth was an object that was sitting on the desk. It was a figure that resembled him. He picked it up curious as to why she had kept it. It was a mystery to him. The others he could understand, but not the one of him for the others had been her friends, he had not.

He had always wondered where she had gotten the figure of him from as well as the other objects representing the Underground. He remembered the book and wondered if these objects were connected to the mystery behind where the book had come from.

He sat the stature back down and crossed back to Sarah's room taking a seat in a rocking chair near Mary Elizabeth's crib. He wanted to be there in case Sarah needed anything.

Sitting in the stillness of the room watching Sarah and Mary Elizabeth sleep he marveled at the bliss David must have felt at having such a family. He felt envious of the dead man wishing he could have the same.


	17. Chapter 17

The Tragedy

Chapter 17

* * *

As the first rays of morning light shone in through her window, thoughts started to pass through Sarah's mind as the black shade of her closed eyelids slowly turned a brighter shade. She resisted her waking thoughts amazed at how wonderful her bed felt after a little more than a week in that hospital bed.

Reluctantly she stretched out of her arms knowing it would soon be time for Mary Elizabeth's feeding. When her left arm felt just mattress, she stifled a cry for the person who should be lying there.

David crossed her mind before she blocked him from her thoughts afraid of how she might react if her mind dwelled on him for too long. She knew she had to be strong to take care of her daughter. She would not allow herself to cry knowing she would fall apart. This made her that afraid she would not be able to care like she should for her darling girl.

She heard a drowsy groan to her right and turned her head to inspect it.

Sitting slumped in her rocking chair with his head hung over in an awkward position was Jareth. Her cry must have startled his sleep she thought amazed that he had spent his whole night there.

It was then that she noticed she was still in her clothes from last night. Aware that the last thing she remembered from the night before was having a conversion with the worm and his wife, she concluded that she must have fallen asleep. Jareth must have carried her upstairs and tucked her in she realized. This made her feel uneasy, not in a bad way, just in a worrisome way that she could not explain.

Just then, Mary Elizabeth started to stir. Sarah knew that if she didn't go to her quickly that she would start crying and wake Jareth up so she swung her legs out from under the covers.

She placed her feet on the floor and stood up still wobbly. However, she was determined to manage. Slowly she stumbled towards Mary Elizabeth's crib grabbing hold of the side as she reached it.

"You know it wouldn't hurt you to ask someone for help," Sarah heard Jareth's voice.

She turned and gave him an uncomfortable grin, "I was trying not to wake you. Mary Elizabeth has started stirring and would have began crying soon." As if on cue, Mary Elizabeth began to wail expressing her need for food after sleeping all night.

Seeing Sarah still grasping at the side of the crib, Jareth stood up and said, "Here, sit down in the chair and I'll hand her to you." Sarah did as he requested and he placed Mary Elizabeth in her arms.

Sarah soothed the baby as she requested, "Can you go warm a bottle for her?"

"Sure," Jareth left the room. He could have magically produced a bottle of milk, but thought Sarah might want some time to herself.

After finding the empty bottles, warming the milk, and testing to make sure it wasn't too hot he headed back upstairs. Upon hearing Sarah's voice speaking to Mary Elizabeth Jareth stopped short.

"I don't know what to tell you my baby. Your father is never coming back and I don't know if you even you even understand that yet. Those evil men took your away from me also took your father away from us both. Hopefully, the police would find them and justice will be done."

Jareth's hand curled into a fist. He hadn't forgotten about those murdering thieves. He had just put his plans for vengeance on hold to take care of Mary Elizabeth and Sarah. Soon he would find them and make them pay for what they had done. He vowed it. He was not going to let the police handle it like he had claimed when he knew Sarah was listening to his and Hoggle's conversion earlier. He knew Sarah would approve of the violence he had planned for them. Oh, she wanted justice but he wanted revenge for what those men how done to her.

He continued to listen not wanting to interrupt Sarah.

"I love you my darling and I will always take care of you. I will never let anything happen to you again. I will see to that and so will your uncle Toby. Also, I am certain so will Jareth. He was our guardian angel when we needed him the most. I will never forget that."

This made Jareth smile. He was glad to be part of their lives now and he knew what Sarah had said about him always protecting Mary Elizabeth was certainly true. He loved that little girl.

He waited for a few more moments before walking in the room hoping Sarah wouldn't realize that he had been listening.

"Here you go," Jareth handed her the bottle and went to sit on the end of her mattress since there was no other seat in the room.

After placing the bottom to Mary Elizabeth's lips, Sarah looked up and inquired, "How's your neck?"

Jareth grimaced rotating his neck slightly, "Sore."

"Well, maybe that will teach you a lesson about sleeping in a chair all night," Sarah admonished him with a look of you should have know better.

Jareth simply shrugged his shoulders, "It's not a problem. I wanted to be here in case you needed help. Beside you feel asleep slumped on the couch, which isn't much different, and probably would have stayed that way if I hadn't brought you upstairs."

Sarah eyed him, "Good point. Thank you, but the next time you unexpectedly decide to crash at my house try the bed down the hallway."

"I'll think about," Jareth smirked. "Oh by the way, after I tucked you in, I wondered around a little."

Sarah gave him an incredulous as he continue, "I didn't mean any harm and I was not trying to be intruding on anything private, but I did come across something I am curious about."

"Yes?" Sarah questioned slightly apprehensive, unsure at what he came across. Without that knowledge, she was not truly ready for him to ask any question for she did not know if it was something she might not want to answer.

"The figures from the labyrinth, where did they come from?"

"From a distance aunt on my mother's side, she sent them every year around my birthday. I've actually never met her, which is why it was odd that she sent them to begin with. She must not have had any other family I guess. I have not received one in years so I believe she must have died."

Suddenly Sarah jaw dropped before composing herself, "You think this is connected to the book, don't you?"

"Yes. How else would someone have such a likeness of the creatures of the labyrinth?"

"You're right. It's the only thing that makes any sense," Sarah starred off in the distance before becoming wide-eyed, "And, the last time I received one was my last birthday before I entered the labyrinth."

"Really? Do you remember which one?" Jareth was now sitting on the very edge of the mattress eager to know more.

"Of course. It was the one of you."

Jareth meditated for a few seconds before replying, "Hmmm…I believe someone was trying to lead you to the labyrinth."

"Why? Why would anyone be interested in me going to the labyrinth?" Sarah stared at Jareth wanting answers to questions that he had no clue for what the reasons could be.

Standing up and approaching Sarah, Jareth responded, "I don't know. However, considering I was the last figure sent to you, it might have had something to do with us. Maybe someone wanted us to meet for some unknown reason."

Sarah shook her head, "But how could they know I would wish Toby away? No one could know that."

"I wish I had the answers which we seek Sarah, but it seems the more we find out, the more answers we have," Jareth pulled his lips tight across his face frustrated at their progress.

"Yet it seems to keep drawing a tighter circle around us like this mystery connects us more than we ever knew we were," Sarah commented looking down at Mary Elizabeth, "Maybe it was so you could be there for Mary Elizabeth when I couldn't for if you hadn't of meet me you wouldn't have known who she was."

Jareth smiled, "Maybe, but I still would have been there for her and taken care of her. I just would not have come searching for you to return her. Besides, you may not have ever realized this Sarah, but I knew you before you even knew me."

Sarah glanced up puzzled, "What do you mean?"

Blushing he replied, "I use to watch you in the park all the time. I was the white owl you use to see."

Shock passed through her eyes, "I should have known. I remember seeing you leave from the tree that night after I returned from the labyrinth. Did anyone else know of this for that may be where this all started?"

"Of course, the Mystic," Jareth shook his head surprised that he had not thought of her before, "Even if no one else knew, she would have known. She would have seen it."

"Who's the Mystic?" Sarah questioned eager to know.

Jareth grimaced, "I try not to have much to do with her. She catches glimpses of the futures and uses her magic to either make these visions happen or to prevent them from ever coming into reality. She tries to help, but her methods can be very troublesome. That is why this reeks of her touch, although I can't say for certain that she is the one behind it. However, I will start my search with her. I only wonder what her motives may be this time. What she was trying to accomplish? Her reasons only have to do with citizens of the Underground and never outsiders so I can't understand why she would bother with you."

"Maybe it has more to do with you. After all, you are the Goblin King. I could have just been a pawn in her game. Could that be possible?" Sarah took the empty bottle away from Mary Elizabeth as she looked up.

"It's possible." Jareth paced around the room thinking about everything that had happened wondering if the Mystic could really be behind everything that had happened between him and Sarah. It seemed too much for even her Jareth thought as he pondered what motives she could possibly have for it.

Just then, they heard the door downstairs open and shut. Sarah glanced at the clock and saw it was still early. She knew it was Toby even before he hollered upstairs.

As Toby came into view, Sarah demanded, "Why aren't you in class?"

"My professor canceled this morning for some reason," Toby replied as he plopped down onto the bed, "I thought you might need some assistance."

"I'm fine," Sarah rolled her eyes, "the both of you worry too much. Now, I won't get rid of either one of you."

Toby frowned, "Actually, that won't the type of assistance I was talking about."

Getting up he walked over and took his sister's hand in his gently looking into her eyes, "Sarah you have been putting off making plans for David's funeral with the excuse that you didn't know when you would be released from the hospital. The police have already released his body and we can't put it off any longer. I know it is difficult for you, but we must make arrangements."

Sarah bit her bottom lip to hold back her tears nodding, "You're right."

Turning towards Jareth she asked, "Can you leave Toby and me alone to do this, please?"

Jareth had been silently listening to the exchange until then, "Anything you want, Sarah. Besides, it will give me a chance to further investigate the matter we were discussing earlier. The Mystic can be difficult to find for she hides herself inside the tunnels that run under the labyrinth. I'll be back later this evening."

"May the day be good to you," Jareth gave his parting before disappearing.

Toby was curious, "What was that about?"

Shaking her head, "We don't know yet. We have stumbled onto a mystery surrounding the book and the figures in my study and Jareth is determined to solve the mystery."

She sighed and then stated in a business-like manner, "However, that doesn't matter now. We have other matters to take care of now. David must have a proper funeral."

Toby dropped his shoulders noting that Sarah still seemed to be distancing herself from her pain. It scared him. As they planned the funeral, Toby hoped the actual event would force Sarah to face her grief instead of hiding from it.

* * *

I know this chapter may have seemed a little slow but I needed to transitional chapter in order to led up to the next few chapters. Plus it took me a while to decide on what to do about the book and the figures. When I asked that question in the story, I hadn't really prepared an answer to it yet.

Sarah will eventually grieve and it will be emotionally explosive. I had planned what I wanted to do about that since fairly early on and it will take place in not the next chapter but in the following one. The next chapter will be about Jareth searching for answers to the mystery behind the book and the figures. However, I did not say he would necessary find the answers which he seeks.

And of course, at some point, I will let Jareth take the justice of the two criminals into his own hands. What will Sarah's reaction be will she finds out?

At least, I will leave you with some interesting questions as to what will come. Have fun.


	18. Chapter 18

The Tragedy

Chapter 18

* * *

Jareth walked quickly through the castle. When he came across one of the castle attendants, he ordered the goblins to go in search of Sel, the leader of the group of goblins that had found Mary Elizabeth. He needed information from Sel.

Impatiently he marched around the throne room wondering if he should have just went himself for the attendant was taking too long and he still needed to find the Mystic. At last, Sel stumbled through the stone doorway.

Jareth stopped pacing and inquired, "Sel, do you remember where you, Tog, and the others found the babe?" He vaguely recalled that Tog had been the goblin who had waited outside with the child before being summoned by Sel to bring her in.

"Yes, yes, I do, in the alley," the goblin nodded gleefully eager to please his sire.

"Do you know which alley?"

The bobbing of the goblin's head started again. "Yes, yes."

Looking at the giddy creature, Jareth spoke in slow, short statements so the goblin could not fail to follow his coming orders. "Sel, take your group back to that alley. Then, find the men that left the child. Find their location and report back to me. Understand?"

"Yes, yes."

To ensure his commands were understood, Jareth commanded, "Repeat my directions."

"Go to the alley."

"Then?"

"Find the men."

Jareth knew that above all the goblin did seem to have an uncanny sense for finding things whether it be an object or a person. The only things they could not seem to find were any magical beings that wished to hide like the Mystic or objects that seemed to be magically blessed or hidden. Magic seemed to provide some barrier for them that they could not surpass.

"And?" Jareth raised an eyebrow.

"Report their location to you."

"Good. Be quick about it. Now, go."

The goblin scampered off in a hurry to gather his comrades and complete his assigned task.

Upon seeing the goblin disappear out the door, Jareth strolled to the corner of the room, reached up grabbing hold of a torch stand. He tugged on the torch stand and it gave way. Slowly, a section of the wall crept open revealing a dark tunnel.

Jareth waved his hand creating a small glowing orb. He sighed as he entered the door that he been created centuries before as an emergency escape route to the secretive tunnels.

Neither the tunnels nor the search for the Mystic bothered him in the least; it was just the idea of having to deal with the Mystic period for she was one of his few individuals of the Underground that he despised.

At one time he had admired the exquisite, powerful woman. He had been entranced by both her fine features and her aptitude for magical workings. That's why he mistakenly got involved into one of her little schemes back when he was young before he had taken the throne.

As he began he search he thought back to that dreadful, costly mistake.

…

The young prince was startled when he heard a soft voice from behind him asking for his help. He was in the castle's private garden that was his sanctuary away from all his princely duties.

This time it was not his duties he was escaping from. Rather he had come here to contemplate asking his long time friend, Lorena, whom he loved dearly if she would be his wife. The two of them had grown up together and were inseparable. Jareth knew no one else in this land was a better match for him. However, although he loved Lorena, he still felt like something was missing.

The only ones allowed in the garden were the royal family, a few caretakers for the garden, and Jonder, a loyal personal servant to the family so when he did not recognize the voice that had spoken, he turned around to see who it was. His breath caught in his throat when saw the tall, curvy but slim, raven hair woman.

"Hello," she smiled seductively.

Regaining his composure and annoyed by the intrusion, Jareth questioned, "No one beside the royal family is allowed in here. Who are you and how did you get in here?"

Moving closer to him, she answered moving her arm to her chest in a graceful motion, "I am Ladonna and I have my ways of coming and going undetected."

The prince stiffened suddenly on guard around this mysterious woman who appeared also perfectly harmless and name seemed distantly familiar to him. The slender woman couldn't stand much of a chance against anyone who tried to physically attack her.

Nevertheless, Jareth felt an air of danger around her deceiving looks that alerted his senses to their fullest alarm. He knew with the magic in his world that one's outward appearance meant nothing compare to the dangers that could lie within.

"What do you need? What do you want?" he stood his ground as he spoke.

Nearing him even more, she replied, "Like I said, I require your help if you consent to give it. I need to protect someone but am not powerful enough to do it on my own. You are the only one strong enough in this kingdom to assist me, for my lord, your talents in magic are well renowned."

Drawing his eyebrows down, Jareth stated, "But a protection spell is simple. Anyone with even the least bit of magical talent can perform one."

"This isn't a normal protection spell for that won't work in this situation. The danger that lurks is far greater than just trying to cause the person physical harm. I believe, if I may venture to be so bold, that I would even need to teach you the spell before you could assist me."

Dismissing the last comment Jareth pursued the situation further frowning at the veracity of her claim, "If the person is in such danger then why hasn't that person gone to my parents, the king and queen, for help? Everyone knows that would be willing to do anything they could to protect their citizens."

She shook her dark hair with rigor before looking up with desperate eyes, "No, no, you don't understand. The person does not know she is in danger and I would like to spare her that knowledge if I can for after all she is part of my family."

"Part of your family?" He was not certain if he should trust the woman but if her family was in danger he felt like he had no choice.

"I will assist you if I can," Jareth reached out a hand and placed it on the woman's shoulder, "However, I will need some additional details about the situation first."

For the next few days, Jareth found that Ladonna occupied his time relentlessly so that he had no time to even see Lorena. During this time, she taught him the unknown spell along with several other magical tricks that Jareth had been previously unaware of like how to conjure an image of the worlds beyond the Underground.

During this time, Ladonna continued to be vague about who the family member was that she was trying to protect not even willingly to tell Jareth her name and the ultimate danger that she had insisted existed. Jareth probed until he was certain that the woman had meant no harm before he would actually complete the spell. And the words to the spell had seemed safe enough to him.

Jareth started the spell repeating the words they had rehearsed. Everything was processing nicely until they came to the part of the spell where Ladonna was to suppose to say, "In protection of…"

What Jareth heard instead brought a flame of fury racing up through his veins.

Ladonna stood before him and articulated in a loud clear voice, "And in protection of Lorena, I forever sever her bonds from Jareth, the Prince of the Underground."

Jareth lunged at her with lighting speed pinning her back against a wall hands bearing down on her shoulder in an unbreakable grasp, "What have you done? What do you mean by this?"

She glared back at him straining against his strength as she said in a slow and even voice, "The two of you were not meant to be for I have seen it and I protected both of you by preventing your forthcoming marriage. Now release me."

"It is not your place to infer with our lives in that manner, you witch! You will reverse that spell or else!" Jareth gave her a heinous stare that made her fear for her future. Jareth was surprise that she hadn't resorted to using magic upon him since he had come to discover during those past few days that Ladonna's powers were just as strong if not stronger than his.

"No I won't. She will be better off without you," she spit out in resistance to his demand.

"You will, for as the prince I command it. And if I have to take this matter to the king and queen you will be held in treason for your treachery!"

"Jareth," a voice hoarsely called from behind him. Jareth turned around to see Lorena collapsing to the ground. He ran to her side. Ladonna was not far behind.

"I had to see you. Something's wrong. I can feel that I am dying, Jareth. I needed you to say goodbye. Besides my cousin, you are the only person I really have," she looked up at him and then her eyes fazed over as she seemed to be in a world of her own, "It's a shame the two of you never got a chance to meet. Remember, I talked about her often. You might not remember but her name is Ladonna. You would have liked her."

Jareth did remember and admonished himself for being so stupid not to have recalled it before now. He should have known who Ladonna was.

"Shhh…shhh…it okay, just be still. You'll be fine," Jareth held her close afraid of what was coming. He could feel her heart weakening at an alarming rate and had no choice but to let her go. No spell could counteract the damage that had been inflected. The spell that Ladonna and he had casted had gone completely amiss killing the woman he loved.

Jareth just stared down at Lorena's drained face feeling completely helpless.

Ladonna knelt on the other of her, "I'm here too, sweetheart. It's your cousin, Ladonna. I'm so sorry for this. I didn't mean…it's all my fault." Ladonna busted into tears. She knew she had caused this. She didn't know what went wrong with her spell but she knew had brought this miserable end to her cousin's life. She hated herself for it.

"No, no, don't blame yourself, darling," Lorena stammered, "I still love you. Do me a favor? Look after Jareth for me okay? He needs someone here to watch over him."

"Of course, of course, ohh… Lorena…"

"Jareth, I love you…goodbye…," Lorena whispered her final words before her head dropped limply back.

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO….," Jareth cried.

Ladonna looked at him wide-eyed, "I, I never meant for this… I'm so sorry…I don't know what went wrong…I never would have intentionally hurt her…you must believe me…," she mumbled through her tears.

Staring with utter hate, Jareth declared with a sneer, "That is what you get for interfering with other people's lives. You now have to live with the knowledge that you caused your cousin's death."

Wanting to her hurt, he continued, "By the way, don't watch out for me, for I would not want you to do to me what you did for your cousin."

With that Jareth disappeared taking Lorena's lifeless body with him. Ladonna was left alone weeping over what she had caused and contemplating her own demise. After that, Ladonna was rarely seen or heard from as she disappeared into the deepest darkest hole she could find, an oubliette. Eventually, her name was forgotten by also all and she became known as the Mystic.

…

Jareth had not set eyes on this woman and had not intended to ever cross her path again until this need had arisen. He had even thought about having her banished from the kingdom by his parents back when but had decided to leave her to her own self-made wretchedness. He wondered if that had been a mistake as he was certain she had interfered yet again.

He continued to roam the different areas of the tunnels until he at last came upon her hiding in the dark barely lit hole. She startled slightly at seeing him there.

"Well, well, I never thought a day would come when I would see you again," the woman haggard over the years but still holding a semblance of her former beauty looked up at him with a surprised expression.

Squatting down to where she sat, Jareth questioned, "Then, I am suppose to believe you don't know why I'm here, am I right?"

"Correct, for I don't my lord," the woman stated then asked, "By the way, how is Sarah doing?"

Jareth's eyes flashed as he seized her wrist, "You do know then. You had better tell me everything about what you have done involving Sarah along with the book and the figures that were sent to her."

Feebly attempting to tug her wrist away for Jareth she declared, "I know nothing about the figures or the book you mention."

"Liar," Jareth squeezed harder on her wrist.

"No, no, I tell the truth. The only part I had ever played in Sarah's life was making sure that the lost goblin child was found in the park so you would see Sarah and sending a whispered thought to Sel's ear to go to the alley so that he might find Mary Elizabeth and bring her to you. Things that involve you for you know the other worlds and beings of those worlds do not interest me."

Realizing that Ladonna had known of the Wilson family's impending fate, he demanded, "You knew what was going to happen to them. Why didn't you stop it? Sarah's David could still be alive. You could have prevented the whole thing. You could at least have warned me for I would have stopped it!"

"It was his fate. Death would have found some way to collect him. Beside you wouldn't have ever listened to me. Now release your hold on me and I will be force to use my magic. I didn't the last time because of my cousin's affection for you," the woman stated.

Jareth loosened her wrist knowing she was telling the truth about both situations. Although he imagined that the woman's magic was considerably weaker now.

"You would dare try anything on me, the king. You know the penalty for such actions, witch. So you honestly promise me that you have not inferred any further into Sarah's life?"

"No, I swear on my late cousin's honor," she stared woefully into his eyes, the grief for her cousin still present over the years.

Releasing her wrist altogether, he replied, "I believe you."

Standing up he questioned, "I must know one more thing. You caused events to make Sarah known to me and to bring Sarah back into my life. Why?"

The ghost of her former self, she answered, "Because unlike you and my cousin, you and Sarah were meant to be, I saw it even back then. And, Lorena asked me to watch over you."

Jareth closed his eyes feeling sick to his stomach, "You mean you killed Lorena because you saw Sarah in my future."

"I didn't mean to kill her, you know that must be true," she begged, "but, you and Sarah were meant to find each other. It was your destiny to find her, not to marry Lorena. I'm sorry, but I thought it was for the best to separate the two of you before it was too late. I wouldn't have done it if I had known the spell would could her death. Please forgive me. I didn't not mean for Lorena to die. She was my cousin after all. I loved her too!" Ladonna grabbed his hand holding it to force him to look at her.

Jareth just stared down at her, "I can only say that I feel sorry for you for you seem to have caused yourself as much misery as you deserve for what you did. However, I will never forgive you for what you did and for the part you caused me to play in it." Jareth snatched his hand out of her grip before turning away from her.

He walked away consumed by his grief over the fresh memories of Lorena's death. He had always hated himself for how Ladonna had tricked him into being a part of that horrible ordeal and now to know it had been because of her vision of Sarah angered him even more.

He knew that if Lorena had stayed in his life that he probably wouldn't have had any involvement in Sarah's life which saddened him but couldn't stand the thought that his future involvement with Sarah had been Ladonna's reason for accidentally causing her cousin's death.

This new knowledge tore at his heart pulling it in two directions. The only thing he knew for sure was that he dearly missed his friend, but that he could not imagine not having Sarah in his life at all.


	19. Chapter 19

The Tragedy

Chapter 19

* * *

For the rest of the day, the past resonated within Jareth's thoughts so that he couldn't return to Sarah's side like he wanted to. He needed the time to take command of his emotions.

His visit with Ladonna had left them in such turmoil that he feared he would not be able to keep his composure in front of Sarah. And Jareth knew that the last thing he needed to do was to upset Sarah at this time. He did not want to risk burdening her with his problems.

Therefore, it was not until the next morning that Jareth returned to Sarah's.

When Jareth had not returned like he said he would, Sarah had wondered what kept him. Not only did she miss his company, but she was worried that something dreadful might have happened to him.

She was tempted to summon him but recognized that her fears were probably just a result of her the recent upsetting events in her life. However, that did not matter to her because she needed to know he was alright.

But every time she started to called for him she hesitated. This was harder for her to understand. She tried several times to bring herself to call him but couldn't. She barely slept that night consumed by not only her worry but also by her inability to understand why she kept wavering upon her decision to summon for Jareth.

It wasn't until the early hours of the morning that she realized why she halted every time. Her growing friendship with Jareth was still very tedious at times for she knew how much he loved her. It did not take her long to see that he had apparently never stopped loving her. She could see it in his eyes every time she looked at him. She often had to turn away just to avoid his gaze.

She could hear it in his voice, in the words that he spoke to her. She had tried to caution him, but to no avail. She felt torn and selfish because she wanted Jareth's friendship but could not reciprocate his love.

She knew that it had to be hurting him. And that is why she could not muster the strength to summon him for she did not want him to read more into her worry than what it actually was.

Sarah was sitting on the couch playing with Mary Elizabeth when she heard a knock at her door. Before rising, she placed Mary Elizabeth in a little sleeper. A day at home had allowed her to recuperate enough to steadily walk on her own but not while carrying the weight of her child. Toby had come by earlier that day before going to class and had assisted her in moving Mary Elizabeth downstairs.

Toby had expressed his surprise that Jareth was not around. When he did, Sarah had kept very vague about the situation concealing her worry by shrugging her shoulders claiming that he probably just had some important duties in his kingdom to attend to. As far as she knew, this might have been the truth for he had been spending more than enough time away from his kingdom.

Upon heading for the door, Sarah puzzled over who it could be. Toby had a key and would have just let himself in. Since her and David had no close friends, no one would be arriving to express their sympathy beside maybe a neighbor, but none of them probably even knew she was home yet.

Also, David's sister was not arriving until the funeral. And when she had talked to the officer on the phone yesterday about the realizing of David's body, he had made no indication of dropping by with further questions.

Therefore, she could not figure out who was at her door and why the person had not used the doorbell.

When she peeked out the peephole, a look of 'of course, that's who wouldn't use a doorbell' came across her face as she saw Jareth standing outside her door. She quickly unlocked the door and motioned him into the house before reclosing the door.

He grinned, "I see you're able to walk on your own today. You must be feeling better."

She nodded before speaking, "Yes, I am. Why did you not just come in? You didn't have to use the door."

"Well, I didn't want to just intrude in on you. I thought it would be more proper since a _normal_ person would not just appear in the middle of a room in a house where they do not live," he said emphasizing the word normal and smirking at the scowl that appeared on Sarah's face.

"And I thought we decided that you were far from normal," she offered more as a statement than a question.

He stroked at his chin before replying, "So we did, didn't we, but I think it's best to keep up appearances at least in your world, my dear. After all, we don't want people talking about some strangely dressed man just appearing and disappearing from your house. What if someone was in here visiting you when I just happened to pop in, especially if I was wearing the proper dress of the men of the Underground?"

Sarah realized at this point the Jareth was again dressed like the men of her world instead the type of attire she had been used to him wearing. He had yet to come visit her in his normal garments. She found herself mildly disappointed for she missed those outfits of his. Back when she first met him, his unusual clothing had always enhanced his air of mystery and distinction. There was no one else like Jareth and his clothes just accentuated his uniqueness.

Turning around to head into the living room, she conceded, "I guess you're right," then added with a smirk, "you would look very strange to others."

"So how is everything going? Did you and Toby finish the arrangements for David's funeral," he asked as he followed Sarah into the living room.

Sarah fell back onto the couch hoping Jareth didn't notice how much the question bothered her. He did.

"Sarah, are you okay," he inquired as he took a seat beside Sarah.

"Yes, just still a little weak is all," she lied. Then she added, "Toby was a great help. It's going to be an intimate graveside funeral tomorrow morning with only David's sister, Toby, and me."

He nodded and asked, "Would you mind if I come to? I mean to be there for you?" He turned and looked her in the eyes with the most earnest eyes she had ever seen. His concern bored right out of them. She was frozen in his eyes for several minutes before she could respond.

"I guess that would be okay," she mumbled disorientated by his stare.

"If you rather I not…"

"No, no, it's okay, truly, it is," she insisted before trying to change the subject by asking, "By the way, you said you were planning on coming back yesterday afternoon, what happened?"

"Umm…something came up," Jareth hedged trying to avoid revealing that something was wrong but not wanting to right out lie to Sarah about the events of the day before.

Sensing something was wrong, she eyed him sternly, "You're trying to hide something. Did you find out something bad about the origins of the book or figures?"

"No, actually I didn't find out anything at all except that the Mystic is not behind it," he answered staring straight ahead as he spoke in a carefully guarded voice.

"Your hiding something from me, Jareth," she accused feeling the tension in his voice.

He glanced at her quickly replying, "It's nothing for you to be worried about. It doesn't concern you or what's happening," before turning away again.

"Jareth, what the matter's," she asked concerned sensing that something was truly troubling him.

He continued to stare straight ahead as stated, "I don't what to discuss it."

Placing a hand on his, she spoke in a gentle voice, "Jareth, look at me."

He turned to face her but remained silent.

"Jareth, whatever's it is, it is clearly bothering you. Talk to me. Please. It will help you," she pleaded wanting to help him.

His face became grave, "I'll talk about what's bother disturbing me, if you talk about David and what happened. I'm not the only one who needs to discuss their feelings, but won't."

Sarah's face became pale as she mumbled, "I can't."

"Then, I won't either," Jareth declared.

The look on Sarah's face sent daggers straight to Jareth's heart. Jareth was mortified. He loathed himself for what he had done.

What he had done was extremely cruel but he could not, would not, tell her the truth. He had known that Sarah wouldn't discuss how she was feeling about David's loss. She was still avoiding it and Jareth callously took advantage of her avoidance to escape talking about Ladonna's revelation.

The two sat in silence for several minutes neither looking at one another until Jareth was able to find enough nerve to speak to Sarah by apologizing, "I'm sorry, Sarah. I shouldn't have…I didn't mean to…I know you're hurting. There are no words to say how wrong and sorry I am for doing what I just did."

Sarah was angry at Jareth, but realized that whatever was bothering him and caused his vicious act. Staring at the floor, she solemnly replied, "I shouldn't have pressed you," feeling responsible for not letting him be earlier when he told her he did not want to discuss it. He had respected her wishes and had not pressed her to talk about David and she felt like she should have done as much for him.

"That no excuse for me being so insensitive. I just can't talk about what's on my mind. Trust me, my dear, it would only make things worse," adding after a pause, "I should go."

As he rose to leave, Sarah grabbed his arm, "No, don't. Please stay. You just got here and I don't want you to leave yet. Please, for me," she pleaded.

"Are you sure," Jareth asked looking worried that she might change her mind, "I don't want to upset you."

A slight soft smile crossed her face as she answered, "It would upset me if you left, Jareth. You are my friend. Friends forgive each other."

Her words soothe his nerves as they sent a small thrill through him. It was the first time she had called him her friend. It warmed his heart.

As he sat back down on the couch, Sarah added, "Besides if both of have dark thoughts we are not willingly to discuss then we may as well not discuss them together, right?"

Jareth couldn't agree more. For the rest of the afternoon, they found comfort in each other's company as they talked about other things before Jareth departed promising to be at the funeral the next morning.


	20. Chapter 20

The Tragedy

Chapter 20

* * *

Sarah awoke the next day with a heavy heart. She told herself she would be brave. She would not let herself weep.

She rose checking on Mary Elizabeth before jumping into the shower. Mary Elizabeth was still fast asleep and would not wake until well after she was done.

She made her shower quick aware that Toby should be there soon to drive Mary Elizabeth and her to the cemetery for the funeral. David's sister and Jareth were both planning to meet them there. Jareth had wanted to accompany Toby and her but she had insisted otherwise. She couldn't deal with Jareth hovering this morning especially considering she knew that both Toby and Jareth would not leave her side after the service.

They were both watching her every move waiting for her to break down in the midst of her grief, but she was determined to stay strong at least on the outside. She was hurting within but would not trouble the others with her grief. She had to be strong when her father and stepmother died in order to raise Toby now she had to do the same for Mary Elizabeth.

As she was dressing she heard the door open and close downstairs. Softly calling down to Toby that she was upstairs finishing up, she picked up her brush to brush out her hair as she heard Toby's steps coming up the stairs.

He knocked on the door and in a teasing voice asked, "Is it safe?"

Laughing she replied, "Yeah, I'm decent. Come in, you can help me get Mary Elizabeth fed and ready."

Toby opened the door and walked over to Mary Elizabeth's crib. He smiled down at the still sleeping child and asked in a serious tone, "How are you fairing?"

As Sarah turned around and walked over to where Toby stood she answer, "As well as can be expected in this circumstance."

She leaned down and picked up Mary Elizabeth hating to wake her up but needed to in order to be at the service on time. Mary Elizabeth squalled but then quieted down as Sarah soothed her. She sent Toby downstairs while for a bottle while she dressed Mary Elizabeth adding a bib to protect her clothes.

Upon returning with the bottle, Toby already had a spit towel thrown across his shoulder and reached for Mary Elizabeth. Sarah protested that she would feed her until Toby insisted. Sarah relinquished the child and used the time to slide on her shoes, get her coat, and check Mary Elizabeth's bag.

It did not take her long to do this. Now, all she could do was wait for Mary Elizabeth to finish with her bottle and the waiting made her antsy causing her not to be able to sit still for long. She would randomly get up and walk around checking Mary Elizabeth's bag, her hair, her outfit, etc…

Noticing her discontent, Toby felt stupid asking yet again for what felt like the thousandth time in the past week, "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I just need to do something. You know sit still drives me crazy," she replied reseating herself on the end of the bed.

"By the way, what about Jareth," Toby asked, "Is he coming today? I'd be a little surprised if he didn't."

She nodded, "Yes, he is. He asked me yesterday if I'd be okay with it. He'll meet us at the cemetery just like Helen."

Toby's nose wrinkled for with as much as he liked David he still didn't care for his younger sister. Helen was only a few years older than Toby and was a royal snob and drama queen.

Sarah laughed at his expression, "Helen can be a handful can't she?"

"Yes she can. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't make it all about herself today like always," Toby replied feeling a bit remorseful for it was David's sister and she probably was hurting just as much as they were.

"Toby, you know that's wrong to say," Sarah scolded him knowing he was probably right.

Once Mary Elizabeth was finished with her bottle, Sarah bundled her up in small coat and Toby carried her downstairs with his sister in tow behind them. He fastened his niece in the car seat, which has remained in there from the other day, while Sarah slid in the passenger seat.

Sarah stared up at the ceiling of the car ready for this day to be over with.

Toby got in and cranked the car. He drove at what seemed to Sarah at a dreadful crawl towards the cemetery.

When they arrived, Jareth was already there waiting dressed in a suit and tie. When he saw Toby's car, he strode towards it meeting Sarah as she was opening the door.

"How are you doing today, my dear," Jareth asked extended his hand in offer of assistance while noticing Sarah's simple black dress.

Sarah accepted as she finishing getting out of the car.

She forced a smile replying, "Okay, I guess," as Toby came around the back of the car carrying Mary Elizabeth.

"The minister is already here," Jareth informed them.

"Only the minister," Toby asked.

"Yes," Jareth answer looking confused by the question before a look of comprehension crossed his face, "Oh that's right, Sarah mentioned David's sister. She's not here yet."

"That figures," Toby muttered under his breath.

Sarah shot him an unpleasant look, "Be nice. She is his sister. Besides we just arrived ourselves."

Jareth watched intently surprised by the sibling's conversation. It was obvious that they didn't seem to care for David's sister especially Toby. He wondered why but thought better than to ask.

They walked to the gravesite. The minister greeted them expressing his sympathies and asking if they were ready to begin or if someone else was to join them. They informed him of the missing party.

They waited for another fifteen minutes before a car screeched to a halt at the curve just inches behind Toby's car. Toby flinched at how close it came to rear-ending his vehicle.

A young woman dressed to the hilt in a designer dress and pearls stepped out and made her way across the grassy area to the waiting party, her very high heels causing her considerably difficulty.

"Helen, it's nice to see you again," Sarah greeted her in a sincere polite tone, "Even in this horrible circumstance."

"Oh, yes, it is," the woman rambled on, "I wish I could have come sooner and spent some time with you, you poor thing. What you must be going through! I know I can barely stand it!"

It didn't take long for Jareth to realize why Toby seemed to despise this woman. Jareth found her to be a sugary-sweet, overly dramatic, attention-seeking person. Jareth had never even actually met her yet and he already couldn't stand her.

Standing near Toby, Jareth whispered, "I understand your repulsion. Was David like this?"

"Thank goodness, no," Toby snorted quietly, "His personality was completely opposite."

Turning towards Toby who was still holding Mary Elizabeth, Helen continued not seeming to miss a beat, "Oh my, how big she's gotten! And Toby, you become handsomer every time I see you." Helen winked at him. Toby cringed.

"Helen, hello," Toby gritted his teeth trying to be nice for Sarah's sake.

Eying Jareth to the side, Helen looked him up and down like she was appraising something to buy before inquiring, "Ah and just who may I ask is this handsome devil here?"

"This is an old friend of mine, Jareth," Sarah introduced him, "And, Jareth this is David's sister, Helen."

"Nice to meet you, handsome," Helen seductively grinned.

"Likewise," Jareth replied aloofly.

"Well maybe after all this is over, we can over go get a cup of coffee," Helen suggested, "That why I can get to know you friend better."

Knowing perfectly well her meaning, Jareth stalled her attempts by declaring, "Sorry, but I can't. I have other matters to attend to."

"Oh, what a shame," Helen pouted, "Maybe some other time."

"Shall we begin since everyone is now here," inserted the minister. Jareth was grateful for the intrusion since it put the woman temporarily at bay.

The four gathered around the grave where the casket had already been buried. The minister stood across from the small group as Jareth and Toby stood on either side of Sarah. Helen managed to stand as close to Jareth as possible which greatly annoyed him. Every time he tried to inch away, Helen only moved closer.

In the midst of dealing with Helen's unwanted attention, Jareth still managed to keep his focus on Sarah the whole time to see how she was handling the final partings to her beloved. Sarah showed no signs of grieving, not even a single tear. Toby was staring at Sarah too with a solemn expression on his face when Jareth caught his eye and they exchanged the same worried glanced. They had briefly discussed Sarah's lack of grieving back during their conversation in the hospital so they both were aware of what the other man was thinking.

The service ended with the minister reiterating his sympathies before departing.

"Oh my dear sister, I wish I could stay and help you through this troubling time, but I must be going back to Europe. That is, unless I had an enticing reason to stay," Helen said glancing her eyes from Sarah over to Jareth who was staring at Sarah. Jareth barely noticed her look and declined to return it.

"That's fine, Helen, I'll be okay," Sarah assured her.

"Oh I know you will hon. After all, you already have this gorgeous man to take care of you," Helen grinned wickedly, "You do work fast don't you."

Sarah was so taken back by what Helen was insinuating that her jaw just dropped and she could not find the words to speak as Toby blurted out, "You, no good…"

Jareth cut him off contradicting her claim, "You have some nerve, showing up LATE to your own brother's service and then making UNTRUE assertions about his widow."

Bearing down his gaze upon her, he continued, "I'll have you know that Sarah sees me as a FRIEND ONLY and nothing more. I have known Sarah since she was sixteen and nothing has ever happened between us other than one lovely dance we once shared in a ballroom surrounded by several others long before she ever met David."

"Therefore, you wench, you should look beyond your self-absorbed, trying to act nicer than I am pretense for two seconds and actually become fully acquainted with a person's character before you start throwing accusations around. Therefore the next time you attempt to hurt Sarah in any way, I'll curse you to someplace so horrible…," Jareth trailed off turning around and walking off a short distance for he had already said too much.

"Well, I never," Helen puffed out her face turning red, "Why…why he dares to threaten me. What can he really do to me?"

"Helen, we're all hurting…," Sarah started not really knowing you to say. She was mad at Helen, of course, but feared that things had gotten out of hand. This was a funeral, David's funeral, and was no time for this nonsense. Besides, she knew that Jareth was plenty capable of his threat.

"That's no excuse for what she said," Toby declared, "And Jareth is completely right in saying what he did. Besides unlike her, Jareth has been around to help you through everything. And by the way, Helen, Jareth has been only a friend to her, an extraordinary friend, but a friend none the less. You should be ashamed of yourself. You always have been an attention seeking, little windbag with nothing important to say. Your main problem today is you did not get the attention you wanted from Jareth because he had no interest. As a result, you attack Sarah for no reason."

At that Helen's face turned even redder, "Well, I guess I now know how you really feel about me. I'm glad I no longer have to see any of you after today. I never did understand how David could fall for such an uninteresting lot of people. Well good luck to my niece, for she'll need it. Goodbye and don't even bother contacting me for I will be around people with actual lives to live. And in contradictions to all of your denials, I do have good reason for my accusations, for it would be obvious to even a blind man that there's something between those two. So don't even try to tell me otherwise," she turned around stomping her high heels into the ground as she went to her car.

"Well, at least…," Toby started before Sarah stopped him rebuking, "That's enough."

"But Sarah, she was wrong," Toby insisted.

"I know she was," Sarah agreed, "But, there is no need of continuing the matter. She is leaving and I dare to say we will probably never see or heard from her again. It is a shame for things to have gone this way for Mary Elizabeth will probably never know her aunt."

Rejoining them, Jareth apologized, "I'm sorry Sarah but I couldn't let her just get away with what she said to you. You deserve more respect."

"I understand. I was furious but could not find the words to say what I wanted to say. I am grateful that both Toby and you stood up for me," Sarah affirmed with a look to both Jareth and Toby.

She turned back towards the grave for a few minutes with a look that revealed no emotion, and then added, "Let's go home. Jareth, you can ride with us if you want."

As Sarah headed in the direction of the car, Jareth fell back walking with Toby.

"You're still worried about Sarah hiding behind a mask too, aren't you?"

Toby confirmed this with a slight nod. "Yes."

"Can you watch Mary Elizabeth for a little bit," Jareth requested.

"Yes, but why," Toby questioned.

"You'll find out later. Thanks, we won't be long." Jareth picked up his pace to catch up with Sarah wondering the best way to convince her to come with him. He was not certain if what he had in mind would help her but it was worth a shot.

Toby quickened his too, but could not match Jareth's long, quick strides. He wanted to know what Jareth was up to before he just took off with his sister. He watched as Jareth caught up to Sarah who had already been several paces ahead of them.

"Um, Sarah," Jareth paused until Sarah faced him, "There's something I need to show you. I know it is probably a bad time but would you mind accompanying me to my castle for a little while. I'll have you home in probably an hour or at the longest two. Toby said he can watch Mary Elizabeth."

"I guess that would be okay," Sarah answer hesitantly, "It would at least get my mind off what just happened. But what do you need to show me, Jareth?"

"It's better that I just show you," Jareth replied.

Then with a wave of his hand, Sarah found everything becoming burry. Swooning she shut her eyes against the unclear vision. She felt Jareth hands supporting her arms just barely below the shoulders. She reopened her eyes to find herself standing beside Jareth in his castle.

* * *

First off, I want to say that this is not my favorite chapter, but since I said something about David having sister, I wanted there to be someway of keeping her from needing to be involved later or explain her lack of being around. Besides, Helen's presence and reason for her exit, kept from making this chapter too dreary and gave the chapter some meat.


	21. Chapter 21

The Tragedy

Chapter 21

* * *

As she looked about her, she felt like she was lost in a dream. The only other time she had been in Jareth's castle was those many years ago when she was searching for Toby. And at that time, she had been in such a panicked rush that all she wanted to do was to find her brother and leave.

Since then, she had often wondered what it would be like to come back here. Now that she was back here especially with Jareth, it seemed surreal to her.

"Are you okay, my dear," Jareth asked while he watched her carefully, "You have not spoken since we arrived."

Still staring around, Sarah replied, "Um, yes. It's just hard to believe that I'm actually back here after all these years. I kinda of always wondered what it would feel like to come back, but never actually believed I would."

Jareth smiled at Sarah's words, for they held a deeper meaning for him. It meant that she had never forgotten about him and had thought about him since leaving. "Well, not much has changed, my dear. And now, you can come back anytime you please. You always could."

"I know, but I couldn't." Her eyes connected with Jareth for a second before quickly breaking the connection.

He nodded, "I understand."

He paused for a few seconds before adding, "We need to head this way." Talking her arm in his, he ushered Sarah towards the hallway and down a long corridor. At the end of the hallway, he turned down another corridor on the left, and then after a few doors, one to the right. After turning down yet another corridor to the left, they began to ascend a set of stairs that curved around and around a large stone pillar. Finally, when they stopped in front of a door at the top of the stairs, Jareth guided the door open.

"After you, my lady," Jareth politely said as he gestured towards the room.

Sarah gave him a sideways glance before stepping into the room. It was bare except for a large mirror. The mirror was full length with a wooden frame that was carved with very intricate designs depicting what looked to be to Sarah's eyes images of a story of creation and death.

"It's beautiful," Sarah mused aloud.

"It is, isn't it," Jareth replied, "And very old with a powerful magic. It has been in my family's possession for several centuries."

Sarah's eyes widen, "It's that old." She then inquired curiously, "It this what you wanted to show me? Don't get me wrong, it's beautiful, but why? And why today? Wasn't there a better time?"

His face grew very somber. Jareth took her hands in his and waited for her to face him, before responding, "Because Toby and I are worried about you. You have yet to fully grieve, Sarah. It is not healthy, not for you and not for your daughter. We both understand that you are trying to be strong Sarah, but you have to let yourself grieve."

She closed her eyes before replying, "Jareth, you and Toby must understand that I can't, if only for Mary Elizabeth's sake. I have had to stay strong to be able to care for her. She needs her mother and not some blubbering fool."

"Sarah," Jareth waited for her to reopen her eyes, "If you do not let yourself grieve, that grief will fester until it plague your every waking moments and then what? How will you be able to take care of Mary Elizabeth then if you become so preoccupied that you cannot even take care of yourself?"

"Jareth, you do not know that I will become that way. Everyone has a different way of grieving," she countered.

"Your right Sarah, but I won't take that chance. Now will you let me try to help you," he said as he gently squeezed her hand.

Knowing that Jareth would not relent, she reluctantly consented, "Okay, but I don't know how you plan to help me. And what does this have to do with the mirror?"

Without saying a word, he turned towards the mirror. He recited an incantation before the mirror.

"I call upon the Great One, the keeper of life and death. I request of you to bring forth one whose flame has done perished. His flame was extinguished too soon. Allow the flame to burn once more, before it undyingly burns out."

Before Sarah's eyes, a shape began to take form in the mirror. As she watched, the shape gradually became clearer.

She let out a gasp, "David."

Jareth gently whispered, "You never had a chance to say goodbye."

She watched as he stepped out of the mirror.

"Sarah," David said smiling, "I've missed you."

Tears welling up in her eyes, Sarah ran to him, throwing her arms around him. "Oh, David. I can't believe your actually here. I love you. I've missed you so much."

"Sarah, I love you," David repeated holding her close, "It's wonderful to get to see you again, to get to hold you."

Turning to Jareth, David acknowledged him, "Thank you, Jareth. I know that according to my consoler you and one other are the only ones alive with enough power to make this happen and she has also let me know how much you have done for Sarah and Mary Elizabeth. I am forever grateful."

Jareth nodded, "I would do anything I could for them."

Sarah looked up at David, "Your consoler?"

"A consoler is like a counselor for the newly dead. Someone to help us transition from living to the afterlife," David answered her question.

"What is it like," Sarah asked not knowing what else to say although she had so many things she actually wanted to tell him.

"It's like another life, like you've just moved somewhere else. The only difference is that you cannot feel physical pain and cannot die. The only pain is the emotional turmoil of not being around loved ones that are still alive and my consoler has assured me that eventually the pain subsides. Just like one grieves and deals with someone's death, we do the same for a short time once we die," David described what he had experienced the best he could.

They stood in silence for awhile before David said, "I must leave now, Sarah. Before I leave, I just beg you to allow yourself to move on. Think of me, tell Mary Elizabeth of her father, but do not keep yourself from living your life because of me. I love you Sarah. I always will."

"No, don't go," Sarah bellowed, "Stay with me."

"I can't. I wish I could," David stated hugging her tighter before turning towards Jareth, "Take care of her. My consoler says you care greatly for Sarah and I can see she is right."

Jareth confirmed, "I do and I will."

"I love you, goodbye, Sarah," he before leaning down to gently kiss her upon the lips. He then unwound himself from Sarah's protesting arms stepping back towards the mirror.

As David stepped towards the mirror, Sarah tried to run towards him, but found herself restrained by Jareth.

"You can't follow him Sarah." Jareth held her as David disappeared with her last look at Sarah through the mirror.

"Let me go, Jareth, let me go," Sarah demanded to Jareth's unyielding embrace, "I will not let him go."

"He is gone Sarah," Jareth held her tighter afraid that she might try running into the mirror and hurting herself if he dare to let her break his hold.

"No, no," Sarah wailed as her knees gave way and she found herself sinking to the ground. Her heart was shattering into an undeterminable number of little pieces and as a result she could no longer hold back the tears in.

Jareth gently let her drop to the floor as he followed her descent still holding her. She cried tears pouring down her face. Jareth tenderly turned her towards him, hugging her to him, allowing her face to fall on his chest. Her moans were muffled by his shirt as the material became soaked with her tears.

"It will be okay, my dear. I promise you pain will ease, it just takes a while," Jareth said thinking back to a time in which he felt like his life was over, when he had lost Lorena. He mourned for years over her. In fact, he had mourned until he saw Sarah, the bright speck in his dark days.

Sarah wept until her red rimmed eyes could no longer find the salt-water to produce more tears. Her head was pounding. She was sad. She was angry. She was miserable. She was furious to the depths of her soul. The emotions roared through her so that nothing made sense anymore. The only thing she wanted was gone and she wanted him back. It was then that she glared up at Jareth.

"Bring him back," Sarah demanded, "You brought him here once, now bring him back."

"I can't Sarah," Jareth woefully replied, "The power of the mirror only works to summon someone who has parted once, no more."

Jareth words only enraged her further.

"I don't believe you," Sarah snarled.

"Sarah, I can't bring David back again. He is gone," Jareth stated woefully.

Sarah started pounding on his chest, screaming, "No, it's not that you can't, you won't. I thought you were my friend, Jareth."

Jareth made no move to stop her from assaulting his chest and waited until the onslaught of her fists came to a halt.

"I am Sarah," Jareth spoke softly, "but David's time is gone and I cannot bring him back anymore."

"Why did you in the first place then," Sarah questioned in a furious tone but hurt tone, "I was handling my grief in my own manner before you decided to step in. Now, I can barely stand it. You did this to me! I hate you Jareth! Take your traitorous arms from around me and take me home!"

Sarah's words stung Jareth like she had taken a knife and rammed it straight through his heart. He knew it was her grief that was speaking but the agony her words were still wounded him.

However, he did not release her. Sarah started shoving at his arms until her eyes became blurry. Before she realized it, they were sitting on her bedroom floor.

"You're home," he said. He then released his hold getting up and extending a hand in offer of helping her up, "Sarah?"

Sarah refused his hand dragging herself up on her own.

"Now leave. I never want to see you again!"

"Sarah," Jareth pleaded.

"No, I said to leave. Get out of my room! Get out of my house! Get out of my life! I never want to see you again," Sarah yelled as she pushed Jareth towards the bedroom door.

He made no effort to resist realizing that it would probably only make things worse. Once he was beyond the door, Sarah slammed it shut.

Jareth just stood there for several seconds not able to move until he heard Sarah on the other side of the door crying. Her tears made him feel guilty. He felt like he was going to throw up as he collapsed against the door. Placing his head in his hand, he mumbled, "Sarah, my dear Sarah, what have I done?"

He was no longer certain that he had chosen the correct path in helping her. He now worried that he might have made things worse instead of better and that sickened him.

Hearing the commotion from below, Toby placed Mary Elizabeth in her downstairs playpen and hammered up the stairs. He knew not what was happening but he had heard his sister screaming.

Upon arriving at the top of the stairs, he saw Jareth sitting outside Sarah's closed door in a crumbled heap.

Jareth looked up at Toby's arrival, an expression of self-loathing on his face.

"What happened? What's going on," Toby questioned anxiously.

Jareth just shook his head, "I think I messed up. I was giving her a chance to say goodbye to him. Maybe I was wrong. I don't know anymore. I just wanted to help her to grieve, but maybe she was already grieving in her own way like she said. All I know is she is miserable and I fear worse off than before. And now she hates me even more than when I stole you."

Toby couldn't bring himself to speak. He didn't know what to say. Jareth was clearly suffering from whatever he had done to Sarah. Toby knew that he should be mad for about Jareth had upset Sarah but he could not feel anger to someone who was so miserable with himself.

Jareth turned his head towards the door and placed his hand on the door. "Sarah," he called out in a pitiful tone before vanishing.

Toby was left standing there with his mouth agape wondering what had transpired while the two had been away.


	22. Chapter 22

The Tragedy

Chapter 22

* * *

Toby slowly walked to the door. He twisted the knob. Upon finding it locked, he gently knocked.

Sarah screamed, "Go away Jareth! Let me alone," before Toby heard her resume crying.

He tenderly said, "Sarah, it's me. It's Toby. Jareth left. Please, let me in."

Sarah's crying ceased for a moment and Toby believed she was going to let him in. However, she sighed, "Toby, I need to be alone. Please."

Discontented at not being able to go in and comfort his sister, he consented to let her be answering, "For now, Sarah, but remember I am always here for you. Just come downstairs when you want to talk."

As Sarah's weeps of misery resumed, Toby departed. It broke his heart to hear his sister in such pain.

In the meanwhile, Jareth brooded in his self-loathing alone on his throne having terrified all his goblins from the room in a rage of grief.

After going back and forth several times wondering if he had taken the best action, he resigned himself to the fact that it didn't matter anymore. What was done was done, he couldn't change it now. And, at least, Sarah was finally grieving. And she hated him for his part in it.

The fragile relationship he had managed to build with her was now damaged, probably beyond repair he feared.

He was broken out of his stupor by distance words, "Your majesty, I found the men."

Jareth heeded the goblin who had just recently entered the room no mind at first. The words made no sense to his current state of mind. It took his consciousness several minutes to process the information before he realized what the goblin had said.

"Where are they," Jareth demanded in a gruff tone.

The goblin proceeded to explain where he had found the men who had attacked Sarah and her late husband. He had found them at an abandoned warehouse not far from the alley where they had seen the younger one leave the baby.

Jareth dismissed the goblin. He rose contemplating how these men were the reason everyone was so miserable. Sarah would be living a happy life with David and he, Jareth, would have never reentered her life or hurt her if it hadn't been for them he concluded. He might not have spent the precious time with Sarah but at least he would never have made both Sarah and himself so miserable. So he believed.

"Oh, they'll feel the pain they have infected. I promise you that Sarah," Jareth declared to the empty room before disappearing.

The warehouse was large and seemed empty save for a light Jareth noticed as he walked towards the door of the building. He slowly pulled the door open. It groaned as the warm air from within escaped. Jareth walked in letting the door slam behind him. He didn't care if they knew he was there. He hoped they would come and confront him so he didn't have to waste his time searching for the low-lives.

They didn't come searching for him as he had hoped but were waiting for him when he reached where the light was he had saw on from outside the building. Mike has his gun ready and waiting pointing straight at Jareth's chest.

"Who are you and what are you doing in here," the man with the gun demanded with a glare raising the gun slightly in warning.

To his surprise, Jareth didn't shrink away from the gun but came closer to them. The two men cautiously watched this odd man with wild, long white-blond hair dressed in a domineering black top with a very high collar that came up to the back of his neck, tight black pants that ran into tall black boots, and a full length black cape.

To the men he was frightening like some demonic creature appearing out of the dark to drag them to the depths of hell. And his eyes, his mismatched eyes horrified them. They were hard and cold with anger and revenge that bore into them.

Stopping just a few feet in front of them, in an eerily calm voice Jareth answered, "I am Jareth, the Goblin King, Keeper of the Labyrinth, Ruler of the Underground and I am here to punish you for your crimes, one in particular. You destroyed the life of a woman most dear to me. And I don't take too kindly to people I care about being hurt."

A shiver ran down Mike's back before he spoke, "I don't know whatcha talking about. Go out where you came from and don't come back or you won't be leaving."

Jareth sneered at him.

"I will not depart until my revenge is complete. And don't bother with false tongues. I know you are the men who attacked Sarah and her family, murdering her husband, leaving Sarah on the side of the road to die, and taking her baby just to dump the defenseless child in a cold alley where she could have frozen to death," Jareth's voice rose to a bellow as he finished his voice echoing in the nearly empty warehouse.

Jareth's hands were clinched tight in fists, his knuckles turning white from the strain.

He noticed that the younger one shrunk back at his words while the man with the gun turned slightly to glare at the boy keeping the gun carefully pointed at Jareth.

"You were supposed to kill the little brat. That is the only reason I let you take it instead of smashing in her brains myself," Mike shouted in anger.

In a shaky voice Sam replied, "I just couldn't let you kill her. I had just shot her mother not knowing that the poor woman just wanted to get her child. I just could not let her die too."

Forgetting about Jareth, Mike turned his rage raising a fist to strike the boy. "Your job is not to think but to follow orders."

As he was about to bring his fist down upon the boy he felt his wrist being restrained. He glanced over to see the strange intruder holding it.

"You will not strike the boy."

"Not right now I won't. First, I will take care of you," Mike said as he jabbed his gun into Jareth's ribs.

Jareth released the man's wrist and rather than back away as the man expected, Jareth vanished along with Mike's gun.

A second later Jareth reappeared behind him holding the gun.

Sam and Mike turned towards him. As they did, Jareth held the gun flat in his hand letting it melt into a metallic liquid falling from his hand to the floor.

"You don't know who you are messing with. You are in way over your head," Jareth smugly informed them, "Unlike you, I need no weapons."

Realizing that this man or whatever he was had powers beyond their imagining, Mike and Sam exchanged terrified faces before taking off in a full fledge run towards the door of the warehouse. Jareth just shook his head.

As Mike and Sam neared the door, Jareth walked in from the outside with a smirk upon his face.

"You really thought you could run from me," Jareth asked incredulously.

"Look man, I'm sorry. Really. Just let us go," Mike pleaded fearing for his life.

Jareth was silent for several moments like he was ready considering the plea for mercy. Then he leaned close to the man grinning wickedly stating, "No."

He straightened and with a snap of his fingers, Mike disappeared.

"What…what did you do with him," Sam stumbled upon his words.

"Not the same as I'll do with you," Jareth answered calmly.

The boy fearing that he were receive worst than his partner for he had shot the woman that the man had said he care about, took off running away from Jareth again.

He didn't get from for the baggy pants he wore impeded his flight as they fell down around his ankles causing the boy to fall flat on his face.

Jareth had to suppress a laugh at the situation wondering why certain males of Sarah's world insisted on wearing their pants like that, especially thugs who often had to run from either other thugs or the police. Jareth wondered what foolishness kept them from seeing how ridiculous and impractical their style of dress was.

He walked over to the boy still lying on the floor.

"Get up and do not try to run again," Jareth commanded as he casted a downward glance at the figure on the floor.

The boy did as he was told trembling as he stood to face Jareth resigned to the knowledge that he couldn't escape. He only hoped that doing as this man said might lessen the torture he was sure to endure.

"What…what are you planning on doing to me," the boy's words shook as he spoke followed by a gulped that sounded from his throat.

"You'll find out in due time," Jareth replied with an unrevealing face, "What is your name?"

The boy looked uncertain but answered, "Sam."

Jareth nodded and paced away stroking his chin before turning back to the boy.

"Sam, you said you couldn't let the child die. I want to know why. Explain yourself."

The boy glanced down at the floor before replying, "I…I guess I felt guilty for what I had done."

Looking up with a pleading look at Jareth he continued, "It was the first time I had shot anyone. I just wanted to fix it. Give her a better chance than I had."

"You've had a rough life," Jareth asked.

The boy just nodded.

"You seem to have been led down the wrong path in life by unfortunate situations. You also seem truly sorry for what you have done," Jareth said, "But…"

Jareth watched as the boy's eyes widen.

"But what has been done has been done and you can't change that. So for the remainder of your life you will have to live with the shame of your actions."

"You are going to let me live," the boy asked in disbelief.

"Not so fast," Jareth cautioned, "You will live, but not here. I will send you someplace where you will start a decent honest life. I will be checking on you. Furthermore, you will never step foot in this location again or any place near here ever again. And finally, you will never utter a word of my existence to another living soul. If you break any of these three conditions, you will face my wrath. Do you understand?"

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir," the boy answered.

"Very well, just remember, I will be watching you. You won't know when or where, but you will see me again," Jareth gave a final warning before snapping his fingers.

Sam found himself standing near a homeless shelter. Jareth was standing there too.

"This will do you for the night. In the morning, I expect you to go out and search for work."

Before Sam could ask where he was, Jareth had already vanished.

Sam looked around grateful for the second chance. He strolled into the building promising things would be different this time. He would make up for his past misdeeds even if it took his whole life.

Jareth watched as the troubled youth entered the building confident that the boy would change his ways. He was certain that Sarah would have approved of how he had handle Sam.

However, the other one…

…Sarah would despise what he was planning…

* * *

I had to add the pants part because I often see boys running late for class trying to hold their pants up with one hand to keep them from falling down. I have actually known one whose did back when I was at a summer program when I was 13 years old. He was certainly embarrassed then! And I have also seen it happen to the suspects when I've unfortunately gotten stuck watching COPS.

And you will find out what Jareth does to Mike.

Hope you enjoyed reading.


	23. Chapter 23

The Tragedy

Chapter 23

A few days after posting my last chapter I received some disturbing news that made my last chapter resonate even further with me. I teach in an area a little distance from where I live that is suffering from increasing gang activity and a former student from the school died from being shot Saturday night while one of the students that I actually teach was shot in the face and chest Friday night by a student that was in my homeroom last semester. He's doing okay, but won't be back for the rest of the school year and the shooter is in jail without bond. As a result, Sam's situation has taken on an even deeper emotional level. Therefore, I would like to dedicate my last chapter, chapter 22, to all those whose lives have been affected by gang activity. My thoughts are with you.

* * *

It was hours later when Sarah finally descended the stairs joining Toby and Mary Elizabeth in the living room. Toby could tell that the events of the day had taken its toll on her with her messy hair, streaked makeup, and red-rimmed eyes.

"Feeling better," Toby questioned with worried eyes, "Do you need anything to drink or eat? You haven't had anything all day."

Ignoring his question, Sarah leaned down to check on Mary Elizabeth before silently dropping onto the couch beside her brother.

"Do you want to talk about it," Toby asked frightened by her complete silence.

When she still failed to answer him, he reached his hand to her shoulder. His touch seemed to break her as she erupted into tears.

"It's okay, Sarah. You'll be fine." Toby maneuvered her towards him so that she could cry onto his shoulder while he held her in a brotherly embrace.

He wanted to ask what happened but held his tongue. If Sarah was not ready to talk about it, he did not want to make things worse.

Sarah cried for several minutes before sobbing, "I was doing fine until he took me there."

Since Sarah seemed ready to talk, Toby asked, "Took you where? The Underground?"

Sarah glanced up, "Yes, to a room in the castle down long corridors with the accursed mirror."

"What mirror? What does that have to do with this?" Toby had no clue why a mirror would upset her so.

"Jareth brought David back," Sarah muttered.

"He did WHAT?" Toby could not believe his ears.

"Well I suppose it was just his spirit, but he was real enough. And when I tried to stop him from leaving, Jareth restrained me from going after him telling me I couldn't follow him. Then, when I begged him to bring David back he said he couldn't," Sarah sobbed breaking into a fresh wave of tears, "but with his powers, I know he could have."

Toby recalled what Jareth had woefully commented about just trying to give Sarah a chance to say goodbye to David when collapsed outside Sarah's door worried that he had went about things the wrong way.

Sighing before he spoke, "Sarah, you know I've wasn't Jareth's biggest fan when he came back, but the one thing I do know is that he would do anything for you that he could. So if he could have brought David back then he would have."

Sarah words were filled with venom, "You don't know Jareth like I do. He can seem nice when he wants to, but underneath it all, he is just about ploys to get what he wants. He wanted me to hurt. He wanted to dangle David in front of me just to snatch him away so I would feel the pain I caused him all those years all when I defeated his sorry self."

"Now Sarah, you know that's not true."

Without saying another word, Sarah started crying again, shoved Toby away from her, and ran up the stairs.

Dazed by Sarah's sudden reaction, Toby got up to follow her but could not catch her. "Sarah," Toby called out before hearing the door at the top of the stairs.

He shook his head knowing it was her grief, but it was making Sarah completely unreasonable. He realized that Sarah had probably ignored the way Jareth stared at her, not seeing how completely in love with her he was. And at this time, probably didn't even care. But, it was this love that made Toby certain that Jareth would never intentionally hurt his sister.

However, he knew that Sarah would have to sort out her feelings herself. Only then would she be sensible to the truth of the matter that Jareth was only trying to help her not hurt her.

And, he thought that Jareth was probably right in giving Sarah a final chance to say goodbye to David considering how they were parted. Now, at least her last memory of David would not be of him being shot point blank in front of her, which would be a relief to her in the long run.

It might hurt her for now but he was certain that Sarah would be grateful for Jareth's gift in the future.

A couple of weeks past by and Toby became increasingly worried about his sister. Sarah moped around only showing a smile when playing with her daughter and refusing to even speak of Jareth.

During this time, Toby had not seen Jareth and was certain that Jareth had not came by when he was not at Sarah's house, which is where he spent most of his spare time when not working or in class.

It was a late evening after Sarah had already put Mary Elizabeth to bed in her crib upstairs that something occurred that alerted Toby to the fact that something had to be done.

Sarah and Toby were sitting downstairs watching a show on tv neither saying a word for Sarah barely spoke lately.

When Sarah picked up the remote and muted the tv, Toby was in the process of asking why when Sarah put a finger to her lips with one hand and pointed to Mary Elizabeth's baby monitor with the other.

Mary Elizabeth was making a soft whimpering noise which Toby knew would eventually become wailing for it seemed that along with Sarah's despondent mood lately that Mary Elizabeth had also become very ill at ease. Once she started crying, she would not stop for a while even when Sarah or Toby was holding her.

Sarah believed that her mood was due to David's death and Toby was certain the loss of her father's presence was part of the what was bothering the child, but also realized that her niece had suddenly worsen upon Jareth's absence. After spending so much time being cared for by someone then the person suddenly disappearing, Toby wondered if Mary Elizabeth felt the loss of both men.

Rising from the couch to head upstairs, Sarah suddenly froze as Toby heard a soft hum that rose to a soft lullaby coming from the baby monitor.

"Jareth," Sarah whispered before running up the stairs.

Toby was close on her heels not sure of what Sarah's reaction to Jareth being there would be.

When they reached Sarah's bedroom, Mary Elizabeth was lying in her crib asleep and the room was devoid of another life.

"He was here, I know it," Sarah stated her eyes glowing.

"I know, I heard it too," Toby confirmed.

Suddenly Sarah's mood darken as she growled, "How dare he come here like this? He has no right. He should just leave us alone."

Toby was almost afraid to ask, "You miss him, don't you?"

Sarah paused as if in shock at what Toby had asked before she glared at him, declaring in a low voice, "NO!"

After checking on Mary Elizabeth, Sarah left the room and headed downstairs leaving Toby behind in her bedroom.

Toby plopped onto the bed. He knew she was lying just like he always knew when Sarah was lying. After all, his sister was a terrible liar. She always had that pause before she lied.

Toby wondered what he could do through. It didn't take him long to decide that there was only three courses of action he could possibly take. First, do nothing and let things play out as they would, which did not seem wise for he was worry that things would just continue as they were. Second, to try to talk Sarah into forgiving and contracting Jareth herself, which he knew his stubborn sister would not do.

Therefore, he quickly decided that the only other option was the best choice. He would have to contact Jareth himself and see if he could talk Jareth into coming to see Sarah. The only problem was he didn't know if Jareth would for he might be too worried about upsetting Sarah. And then, even if Jareth would, Toby didn't know if Sarah would even talk to Jareth.

But he could see no better option. And, he had to do something. Toby saw that Sarah needed her friend back. She needed Jareth back.

As he rose to leave, he noticed a white owl fly away from the window.


	24. Chapter 24

The Tragedy

Chapter 24

* * *

Toby waited until Sarah was ready to head upstairs and leave before he departed his childhood home and headed to his apartment.

Upon shutting the door of his apartment, he called out, "Jareth, I need to speak with you."

Nothing happened for a few seconds, but then he appeared in front of Toby.

In a genuine voice, he said, "Toby, I am somewhat surprise you summoned me. Why did you?" For although Jareth had heard Toby ask if Sarah missed him, he certainly did not know what Toby's thoughts were when he went through his options and had decided on contracting Jareth.

Before getting to the real matter of why he had summoned Jareth, Toby asked, "It was you wasn't it? Tonight in Sarah's bedroom humming a lullaby to Mary Elizabeth?"

"Yes, but you and Sarah already realized that so that must not be the reason you summoned me," Jareth stated.

"No it's not," Toby agreed moving on to the real matter at hand, "Actually the reason I asked you to come is because Sarah misses you."

"Really," Jareth raised an eyebrow questioning, "I heard you ask her, but she denied it."

Toby laughed, "And you couldn't tell she was lying!" He was not surprised that Jareth had been within listening distance after leaving the room.

"No, I couldn't," Jareth claimed, then indignantly asked, "What's so funny about that?"

"Oh sorry, it's just Sarah is a terrible liar so I was surprised you didn't notice her lie. Maybe it's just because I know her so well that I recognize it," Toby shrugged, and then continued, "Sarah truly does miss you Jareth. She won't admit it, but she does."

Sighing Jareth said, "I miss her too." Since leaving Sarah's presence, Jareth's days had become a mindless blur as he went about his kingly duties in a numbed state of mind barely paying attention to what he was suppose to be doing.

He added, "But what can I do about Sarah missing me? She told me she never wanted to see me again, so I am giving her what she asked for."

"And that is what is going to keep you away," Toby exclaimed, "Just because in a moment of anger and grief she told you to leave?"

Jareth shook his head, "Toby it's not like that. I am doing this for Sarah. Both times I have become involved in her life, I have managed to hurt her. I won't do it again."

Toby could not believe how Jareth thought that staying out of Sarah's life would hurt her less.

"Jareth, people often hurt those they care about. After all, Sarah wished me away for goodness sake. However, that doesn't change the fact that we still care for the person that hurt us. You might have hurt Sarah, but you are her friend and she not only misses you she needs you," Toby paused to catch his breath before continuing, "That is why I called you. Sarah needs her friend back. I was hoping you would go see her."

"Are you certain that wise," Jareth questioned, "I do not want to upset her if she truly wishes I was not there. I think it is best for me to wait until she asks me to come herself."

"But she never will," Toby warned, "Sarah is too stubborn. That is why I believe you need to go to her."

"Toby, I won't without her request. I owe her that much. And do not try to trick us by summoning me while in Sarah's presence for I will know and will not come unless she asks me to," Jareth declared.

"If for any other reason you ever need me, summon me Toby for I will come," Jareth stated before vanishing.

Toby slumped onto his couch at a loss of what to do. He sat there for several moments before an idea occurred to him. Sarah would hate him, but he it was so crazy it might just work.

The next day he wasted no time arriving at Sarah's house very early letting himself in. Not surprising to him, Sarah was already up and dressed.

"What are you doing here so early Tob," Sarah greeted him holding Mary Elizabeth.

"Sarah, I am about to do something you will not like, but it is for the best," Toby warned her.

She narrowed her eyes as she questioned, "What do you mean?"

Not answering her, Toby hollered out, "Jareth, the Goblin King, I wish you would take Mary Elizabeth away to your castle in the Underground."

Sarah's eyes widen as she stammered hugging Mary Elizabeth tighter, "Why? Why did you? Have you lost your mind?"

Before Toby could answer, Jareth appeared near them.

"WHAT HAVE YOU DONE," he thundered.

"Simple, Sarah is too stubborn to summon you even though she misses you and you told me you would not come to her unless she asked you to because you were too afraid of hurting her again, so I found an alternative," Toby explained in a calm voice.

Jareth glared at him, "But do you not realize that after what you have done that I must take Mary Elizabeth now? I have no choice."

Sarah cried, "No…"

"I'm sorry Sarah but you know the rules," Jareth looked positively sick as he said it.

"Will you at least give me the chance to complete the labyrinth again to get her back," Sarah asked in a demanding yet desperate voice.

"I can't for you were not the one who wished her away," Jareth answered.

"But, Jareth…," Sarah persisted not willing to give up.

Interrupting her, Jareth continued, "But, I will give Toby the chance."

Sarah eyes welled with tears almost forgetting the past days, "Thank you, thank you, Jareth."

Jareth stared at her for a minute caught off-guard by her sudden warm-reaction to him before replying, "Anything for you, Sarah. I will even send Hoggle to help him through it."

Although Toby saw them communicating in peaceful terms he was aware that they were a long way from going back to the way things were between them and was afraid to let things drop so quickly.

"I will not attempt to complete the labyrinth, that is, not until the two of you talk through what happened," Toby declared.

Outraged by his statement, Sarah hollered at him, "You only have a limited time to complete the labyrinth Toby. We don't have time for this."

"Well then I guess the two of you need to get talking," Toby replied, "Besides I have class soon and need to leave."

"Toby…," Sarah started but Jareth interrupted.

"Toby, you are being a stubborn fool," Jareth began and then added, "But if you are determined to continue down this path then so be it."

"Jareth, you can't mean it," Sarah eyes widen with anger at what he was saying her voice going ice cold, "Toby must."

"And he will, Sarah," Jareth assured her.

"But you just said..," Sarah started in a distrusting voice.

"I know I did," Jareth stated, "But what I meant was that he will, but when he chooses to."

"What, but how," Sarah asked confused, "I thought there was only a given time limit."

Jareth paused for a minute thinking of how to answer her question, "There is but there is something you don't know Sarah. When I took Toby as a babe, I was planning on the two of you remaining with me as you well know Sarah. As a result, I had named Toby as my heir."

In unison Sarah and Toby shouted, "WHAT?" Their eyes were wide as they glanced at each other and back at Jareth.

"I am your heir," Toby asked stunned grabbing a hold the nearest table to keep his balance.

"Yes," Jareth said, "I didn't ever mention it before because I did not see a need to until now."

"But what does that have to do with anything," Sarah asked eagerly unsure of where Jareth was headed with his revelation.

Jareth gave a sideways grin leaning a bit closer to her face, "Everything, my dear. For it means that has my heir, Toby is entitled to certain privileges when it comes to the labyrinth. Therefore, I can make one of those privileges that his time can begin when he so chooses, similarly to how I gave you the advantage of thirteen hours."

Sarah scowled, "I don't need to remind you that you took a few of those hours away."

"Only at your false boasting that the labyrinth was I quote, 'A piece of cake,'" Jareth smirked not allowing to forget why he had done it, "I thought we were to put the past behind us."

"That's apparently easier said than done," Sarah muttered.

"Yes, apparently," Jareth mused struck again by Sarah's erratic unpredictable reactions, "Well for now until Toby completes the labyrinth, I must take Mary Elizabeth with me to my castle." Jareth reached out to take the child.

"No," Sarah said backing away, "Why can't she just stay here until then." Her expression was firm that she would not release her daughter but at the same time pleading that he would not pursue the matter.

"Because Toby specifically stated that it was to be my castle in the Underground," Jareth told her and then gave her a gentle smile, "Of course you may join us Sarah. I would prefer to keep you with your daughter."

He knew that Sarah would come for she would do anything to stay with her child and he was glad. He had missed her so and was secretly pleased at what Toby had done for it meant more time that he could spend with her. Of course, he was still worried about causing her pain, but that could not overtake his joy. He realized that he could not avoid the thrill he felt just being near Sarah.

Sarah did not hesitate, "If that is my only option, then I will gratefully take it," she said her voice filling with disdain at the situation.

Jareth moved closer to her, "I will need to support you, if you'll allow it. Remember how dizzy you became last time."

"Okay," Sarah replied in a stand-offish voice becoming very cold towards Jareth again, "But I need to go pack some of Mary Elizabeth's things to take with us."

Sarah disappeared out the door and they heard her trudging up the stairs.

Sarah's current reaction verified Toby's judgment that he had done the only thing he could have and that Sarah still needed to deal with complex feelings towards Jareth. The only problem is that Toby didn't realize just how complicated those feelings actually were.

Jareth observed Toby for a minute before saying, "Thank you, Toby. I fail to agree with your methods, but thank you nevertheless. I just hope beyond hope that your plan works for you know if it does not your sister will despise you for it."

Toby nodded, "I'll take my chances for Sarah's sake. If there is even a chance of it helping her, then it is well worth the risk."

Jareth shook his head, "It is your funeral."

This caused Toby to smile, "I guess so."

Jareth chuckle, "Well, I promise to visit your grave."

"Okay," Toby replied still laughing, then raising an eyebrow, "Your heir, eh?"

"Yes that is if you still want it and plan on coming to live in the Underground one day," Jareth said but then cautioned with a smile and a wink, "But don't get to thrill. I don't plan on dying anytime soon."

Toby didn't know if Jareth was an immortal, but realize that according to everything that he had heard that Jareth seem to age differently from others or at least the others in his world. He wondered if it was the Underground that caused him to age differently.

He was about to ask when Sarah came stomping down the stairs.

As she came in the room she walked over to where Jareth was her arms holding a couple of bags along with Mary Elizabeth.

She turned towards Toby and glared speaking in a low iron voice, "You better not leave us there for too long. You know it will take a long time before I will ever forgive you for this Toby, if I ever do."

Toby answered, "I will leave you as long as you need. Remember, I am doing this for you."

Instead of arguing with him, she just glared at him.

She then looked up Jareth, "We can go now."

"When you are ready, just let me know. You already know how to," Jareth told Toby.

He then requested, "Please, allow me to hold something for you, my dear."

"No," Sarah stubbornly stated refusing his help.

Jareth glanced up frustrated but said, "As you wish." He then grabbed hold of her shoulders and they disappeared.

Toby decided that he would wait at least a week before contacting Jareth. Maybe by then Sarah would have forgiven Jareth.

He was also hoping that maybe by then Sarah's temper would have calmed towards him for he knew that he would be in for it afterwards for what he had done. He could only imagine the fury Sarah would unleash on him in due time.

The only problem is that Toby didn't realize that time moved differently in the Underground and that a week in his time was longer in a magically land where Sarah's ten hours adventure had taken place in less than five hours in their world.

* * *

This wasn't how I was planning for this chapter to go. When I had originally thought of Toby doing something like this a long time ago not long after I started the story, it was actually Sarah I was going to have him wish away in order to resolve her differences with Jareth but since I know there are already stories where Toby wishes her away for other reasons, I decided to go with Mary Elizabeth. Besides I believe it created a stronger reaction to the situation for Sarah and still forced the situation I wanted for upcoming events.

Note: Although I have not read the manga sequel to the movie, Return to the Labyrinth, I do know that it focuses on Toby being Jareth's heir and that's why I decide to play up on the idea, but will not follow the storyline of the manga.

Hope you enjoyed it this chapter.


	25. Chapter 25

The Tragedy

Chapter 25

* * *

As they arrived at the castle, Sarah's hands let go of the bags she had been holding as her lightheadedness from the trip forced her to lean against Jareth.

"Here," Jareth said taking Mary Elizabeth from her arms and easing Sarah to the floor. Sarah was as pale as a ghost and felt as if she might faint.

After a few minutes, Sarah began to regain her color.

"Better," Jareth asked.

Sarah nodded still slightly weary, "Why did I get so dizzy this time? Last time, it did not affect me so badly."

"Because you were carrying more weight," Jareth explained, "In transferring from place to place it takes the same energy from your body as if you walked the distance. It's my fault; I should have insisted that you gave me your things instead of allowing you to keep them."

"But wouldn't it have just drained your energy instead," Sarah asked not completely understanding what Jareth had explained.

Jareth expressed some amusement smirking with a cocked eyebrow, "Is that concern for me in your voice?"

Flustered by his inquiry, Sarah practically yelled, "NO!" Then she stammered meekly, "Well, I guess…I just wouldn't have wanted it to harm you too."

Pulling her to her feet, he continued, "No, it wouldn't have really affected me, my dear, but thank you for your concern. I am use to traveling like that and my ability with magic aids my ease of traveling so. Besides think about it, I was already transporting your weight and everything you were carrying."

"Oh," Sarah uttered feeling a little dumb for not thinking about the last part.

Still holding Mary Elizabeth, Jareth waved a hand causing a playpen to appear placing Mary Elizabeth in it.

"Now, shall we talk he asked gesturing to a couple of chairs that had been pushed towards the walls of the throne room.

Sarah avoided his eyes knowing they would be the gentle, caring eyes he had come to use whenever his glance was upon her. The thought of those eyes reignited why she felt betrayed by him, "Jareth, there is nothing to talk about. I hate you for what you have done and I won't forgive you for it."

"But there is Sarah. Besides, it why Toby did this, we should at least make an effort. So you will at least listen to what I have to say. You can't go anywhere until you do." Jareth cupped her chin forcing her to look at him.

Sarah jerked her head away from his touch before declaring, "I will listen to what you have to say and I will explain my side, but that is all. You hurt me; you brought David back just to take him away. You caused me to feel the pain of losing him all over again. So, you want to explain that!"

Jareth closed in eyes grimacing, "That's not what I meant to do Sarah and I am sorry for the hurt I caused you. I just thought it would help you to say goodbye to him, a few more precious moments to ease the loss and help you come to terms with the loss instead of bottling up the pain."

Sarah was silent for several moments as she thought about what he had said. The realization she came by struck her suddenly causing the cloud of hate she had been harboring for Jareth to rapidly evaporate into almost nothing, just a lingering resentment for his unsolicited interference. She realized that maybe she had been wrong for those few moments with David was worth the pain she had felt afterwards.

She replied, "I am grateful that I got the chance to say goodbye to him. Those moments were nice to have. Thank you for that, but Jareth it wasn't your decision to make. You should have at least warned me beforehand."

Jareth nodded, "You're right, I should have. I should have let the choice been yours."

"Yes you should have. And I guess that I should apologize for lashing out at you in my anger and sadness," Sarah said then gave a small laugh thinking of how silly she had been acting recently, "I even accused you of doing it on purpose to hurt me back for having defeated and leaving you."

Aghast Jareth said, "Sarah, I would not, I would never…"

Sarah interrupted him, "I know that now. Actually, I think I knew it all along. I was just hurt is all and truth be told it made me a little more than unreasonable." Sarah squinched her nose up at the last knowing she had been extremely unfair to Jareth.

"It always does," Jareth stared off into the distance like he seeing something.

Sarah glanced to where was Jareth was staring but didn't see anything. She was worried that something was wrong for this did not seem like Jareth, but she realized that she still didn't really know this man that entirely well. She had barely spent any time with Jareth her first time in the Underground and since it had only been about a little more than a week they had spent together before what had happened.

"Are you okay," her voice sounded with concern.

Jareth shook his head as if to rid his thoughts of something before looking back at Sarah, "Yes, sorry, I just got lost in my thoughts, but yes emotions make one act in ways they normally wouldn't."

"You were recalling something weren't you? What was it," Sarah questioned with a soft voice tilting her head curiously.

"It's nothing," Jareth assured her with a smile, "Just something that once happened."

Sarah wanted to know what he was seeing in his mind but decided that it wasn't right to press him for information that probably had nothing to do with her.

"Okay, but now what," Sarah asked, "I can't go anywhere, so what can I do, just sit here?"

"First off, are we okay? I mean are we on good terms again?" Jareth went to place a hand on her shoulder but hesitated and lowered it back to his side.

Sarah noticed a longing eager glint in Jareth's beseeching eyes that made her nervous. "I don't know about right now, but we will be. I just need time."

He went over to the playpen and picked up Mary Elizabeth, then walked back over to Sarah sticking his arm that was not holding the child out for Sarah's arm.

"Now, let me escort you around the castle. I'm certain there are places that you would find much more interesting than this boring old room that you've seen before."

Although she was uncomfortable with the aspect of accepting his arm, she politely did so.

They roamed through different parts of the castle with Jareth carefully keeping her away from the room with the mirror.

They didn't spend much time anywhere except a wonderful garden that Jareth showed Sarah that was within the castle walls. There Jareth walked her around showing her the different areas of the garden.

"It's beautiful Jareth. There are so many different kinds of flowers and ones that I don't even believe exist in my world," Sarah smiled with enjoyment.

Jareth ginned for he loved seeing Sarah enjoying herself especially in a place so special to himself.

"This is my favorite place in the castle. It's always been my sanctuary."

Sarah was taken aback for Jareth to be sharing something so special with her. It also sent another wave of guilt through her for the way so had acted towards him for Jareth tried so hard to please her.

"I can see why," Sarah flashed him a smile, "If I had a garden like this, I would find trouble leaving it. Oh, I would have my house full of these lovely flowers."

Suddenly Jareth handed her Mary Elizabeth and then ducked underneath an arbor. Within a minute he was back carrying a handful of flowers.

He presented them to Sarah with a wide grin, "For you, my dear."

Sarah blushed but did not reach for the flowers as she told him, "They're wonderful, Jareth. But I can't accept them." Sarah hated not being able to take the flowers but she was still afraid of Jareth's strong feelings towards her.

Jareth face fell, "You think that by accepting them that it would signal something. Relax Sarah, I just meant it as a friendly gesture." He motioned the flowers towards her again trying his best to mask his hurt.

Realizing the unhappiness now present in Jareth, Sarah reluctantly accepted the flowers, "Oh, well then, thank you."

Sarah noticed the drop in the atmosphere between them as they continued their walk through the garden barely talking. Sarah could feel Jareth's pain in his silence and it hurt her deeply. She wanted nothing more than to comfort him but did not know what to say.

They soon left the garden and headed for another area of the castle. Upon reaching a door Jareth said, "While you stay here, this room is yours to use as you wish and I will have the bedroom across the hallway prepared for you since it seems Toby is going to be leaving you and Mary Elizabeth for the night." As he said the last part, he gestured indicating the room directly across from where they stood while ignoring Sarah's brief irritated look that he hoped was for her brother and not him. Then, he opened the door and escorted Sarah within it.

The room was completely dark when they entered where Sarah could not see a thing. Then, she felt Jareth doing something she could not see and suddenly the fireplace lit up in a burst of flames.

"And let there be light," he joked. She let out a little laugh and smiled.

Then Sarah took a step forward and looked around noting a uniquely feminine feel to the room. It was a spacious sitting room with only a few luxuriously overstuffed chairs with frilly pillows, bookshelves lined with books ranging from novels to guides on practicing magic, thick throw rugs, a large fireplace, and several beautiful paintings.

While Sarah was still staring around the room, Jareth came up behind her and told her, "I hoped you would like it."

Sarah nodded still lost in wonderment at the magnificent room, "Thank you. But are you sure?"

"Of course, Sarah. And besides this room hasn't been used for years and it should be again," he smiled at Sarah encouraging.

Sarah found herself curious as to why the room had been abandoned over the years and to what purpose it had originally served.

"Jareth," she started. He turned to her. "Why hasn't the room been used," she questioned, "Is it something to do with who it belonged to?"

Jareth's eyes seem to sadden as he looked upon Sarah and nodded, "Yes, it does."


	26. Chapter 26

The Tragedy

Chapter 26

* * *

Jareth then smiled, "It was my mother's sitting room."

"Oh," Sarah gasped. Even though she knew it was silly, the thought of Jareth's parents took her by surprise.

Jareth laughed at her reaction, "Not what you expected, eh?"

"Well no, not really," she laughed, "It was stupid of me I guess. After all, you must have had parents just like everyone else."

They laughed some more before becoming quiet.

Then, Sarah said, "Tell me about her please. What was she like? And how about your father, what was he like?" Sarah was eager to learn more about Jareth's parents, curious now to know more about his past.

"Okay, but please have a seat first," he gestured to a plush red chair in front of the fireplace. He then took Mary Elizabeth from her arms, waved his hand bringing Mary Elizabeth's playpen into the room, and placed the child within the playpen.

Only after Sarah was seated did Jareth take the chair across from her.

He sat and stared at the fire for a minute like his was trying to collect his thoughts before he turned to Sarah and began, "My mother was a kind, sweet woman but stern when she needed to be." He chuckled, "I still remember the looks she used to give me whenever I was in trouble. I was a very mischievous child if you can imagine."

Sarah chortled, "You mischievous? Surely you jest since as an adult you have never done anything someone would consider wayward."

He squinted his eyes at her playfully before continuing, "Humph! I guess I deserve that. Well, my mother was beloved by the kingdom and she loved doing for the citizens of her kingdom just as much as she did for her family. You see Sarah, our kingdom is our family. As a ruler, one is responsible for taking care of the people of their kingdom just like you take care of your own family. You cannot always do your best for everyone, but you must at least try. Although I have to admit that I have failed quite often throughout the years to take care of it as well as my parents did because of my own pity issues."

Sarah remembered how callous Jareth had been to Hoggle and occasionally to her the first time she was there and had just figured him for a cold-hearted man, but now that she was getting to know the real Jareth she wondered what had made him act as such. Sarah watched him intently as she spoke.

"Jareth, I know this may be wrong of me to ask, but when I first came to the kingdom years you seemed extremely harsh and cold-hearted. I know I was blinded by my own hatred of the situation back then, but I do remember how terrified Hoggle was of you and how utterly bad you threatened him. And now, since you have mentioned that you have failed to care for the kingdom like you have wanted, it makes me wondered why it was so for you seem to care a great deal about others."

As Sarah watched, Jareth's eyes clouded over and he closed them pressing his lips together and squeezing his hand into a hard fist until it became white from the lack of blood circulation. Sarah was afraid that she had outspoken herself. It was not until Jareth unclenched his fist and opened his sadden eyes meeting hers that Sarah realized that he must have been reliving a painful memory.

"I have always cared for my inhabitants, Sarah, but I guess I just could not see back then how wrong I was in trying to assure that my orders were followed. I thought fear was more effective than kindness even though kindness probably would have gained me more loyalty. However, that does not truly answer your question, my dear. I can only say that I was lonely and angry back then and I let it rule my life, but that was another time and I rather not talk about the reasons behind it."

Sarah did not pressed him aware from his tone and anguish that something dreadful must of happened in his past that he did not want to discuss. Seeing Jareth upset saddened Sarah and she felt bad for him. She wanted to comfort him, to reach out to him, but was not sure how to. She looked at him and it pained her to see him in such pain but also made her understand more about him and the way he use to be. Thinking of that made her aware of how much he had changed and became begrudgingly aware of the part she must have played in it.

Although, she realized this probably meant that Jareth's affections for her were even deeper than she previously realized, it made her glad to have relieved some of his pain by just having been a part of his life. As a result, she felt a swarm of different feelings but it was dominated by her empathy for the way Jareth must be feeling. Not knowing what to say, she was relieved when he continued changing the subject.

"Anyway, you wanted to know about my parents. This was my mother's retreat, her place to relax. You see the paintings around the room," he asked.

Sarah glanced around at beautiful paintings of landscapes that must be have been different parts of the kingdom. She thought she recognized a couple of places but could not be sure after the length of time she had been away from there.

She nodded, "Yes, there are lovely. Whoever painted them must have been very talented."

He smiled to himself, "Yes, my mother was."

"You mean your mother painted them," she exclaimed in awe.

"Yes, it was her hobby. One of the few things she did that was hers alone. Even my father learned not to interrupt her when she was at work unless it was an emergency. Once she started working on a painting she work at frenzied pace until she completed it. My father often teased her that it was like she was possessed when she painted, but made the biggest fuss over them when she completed one," he chuckled.

Sarah smiled, "Sounds like he adored her."

"He did. His eyes lit up every time he looked at her or talked about her. He was a big, strong, quick-tempered man, but she could always melt his heart. Now, don't get me wrong, Sarah, my father was a caring and wise ruler with a good sense of humor, but he had a wicked temper and a stubborn nature that she was the only one who could soothe."

A slight grin crossed Sarah's face as she thought of how Jareth's personality was much like his father.

Noticing her smile he commented, "Yes, I know, I am my father's son."

"I didn't say anything," she replied.

"No, but don't deny you were thinking it and rightfully so," Jareth said.

"Well, I guess I was," she conceded.

He reached across and patted her hand leaving his resting on top of hers. "I'm not upset. I know my temper and you've seen my temper to only a certain degree, but like my father with my mother, I can never stay angry with you around, my dear," he reassured her as he stared into her eyes.

Sarah's blushed and looked away to escape Jareth's stare as she tried to slow down her speeding heart, which was pure racing. She had to admit that she already knew what Jareth had admitted to her, but that didn't change the nervousness she felt from his words being spoken aloud. And his hand on hers at the moment did not help as she felt the warm of his skin on hers. Once she finally managed to gather herself and turn back to him hoping he hadn't seen how his comment had affected her, she became quick to change the subject.

"What happened to them, Jareth," she spoke in what she hoped was a low, controlled voice and not the shaky voice she felt like she was now speaking with.

Jareth withdrew his hand. Sarah was not sure whether it was because he was aware of the way it was making her feel or because of the question she had asked.

Not looking at her, but staring at the fire, Jareth began, "The Goblin Kingdom was not always the only kingdom of the Underground, Sarah. Once, long ago, there was another kingdom called Malum. Malum was a dangerous place, even more so than the labyrinth can be to someone who does not know its secrets. The ruler was a dark monarch who ruled the kingdom with an iron fist like a dictatorship who would use unspeakable tortures to accomplish his tasks. He made my threatening to suspend Hoggle head first into the Bog of Eternal Stench look like child's play in compare to the long unendurable painful suffering he put his people through."

Sarah was not sure where Jareth was headed with this but was hoping that his parents had not fell prey to the unspeakable tortures he was mentioning. She continued to listen as she bit her bottom lip.

"One day, a few of his people escaped to our kingdom and requested our help to free Malum and its inhabitants from its oppressive ruler. Once we heard of the horrors, my parents were quick to gather and prepare soldiers to help. Although, several disagreed with our decision, my father and I went into the battle as well declaring that it was not right to send our people into battle if we were not willingly to stand beside them on the field. Even though my mother hated to see us put our lives at risk, she agreed with our belief. Therefore, we set out."

As Jareth took a short pause, Sarah asked, "But what about your magic? Didn't it help you? And I thought immortals could not be killed. Or, is the book wrong about you being an immortal?"

Jareth looked at her thoughtfully, "Well, although my lifespan is limitless in the number of years I may live, my body is still susceptible to those of a normal person. And as far as magic, it is extremely dangerous to everyone in the Underground and possibly outside the Underground for ones to fight using magic because the unrestrained release of such violent energies can cause a cataclysmic reaction across the lands."

"Oh," Sarah gasped.

"Therefore, everyone fought using metal weapons and not magic. My father was an excellent swordsman and he had trained me well. During the battle, we were separated once the battle began. I was told later by a witness who tried to get to my father in time from several yards away to help him that upon realizing who he was several of the enemy soldiers ambushed him at once making it impossible for him to defend himself. The man said my father fought bravely till the end, but by the time he reached him, my father had already been mortally wounded. However, he continued to fight and they managed to kill the men before my father collapsed."

"I'm sorry, Jareth," Sarah said gently placing a hand on his arm, "That must have been terrible for you to lose him in such a way." Sarah knew the loss of a parent and could easily emphasize with him unlike before when she did not know what painful memory he was hiding.

"It was, but I'm not certain it was the worst part," Jareth stated, "I think seeing my mother in such pain over his loss was the worst part."

"Seeing someone you love hurting is often worst than your own hurt," Sarah consoled him.

"Yes, but seeing them choose to cease their own life is even harder," Jareth muttered.

Sarah took a sharp intake of breath, "You don't mean that she killed herself."

Jareth glanced at Sarah and held her eyes, "Probably not in the way you think Sarah. Since our lifespan is limitless, our kind can mentally choose to end our life by using our magic to release our spirit. All that happens is that our heart slows until it stops beating. And before she chose to join my father in the afterlife where they could be together again she told me what she was planning to do in order to prepare me for it. And, I insisted to be there when she took her final breaths for I would not let her move on without some semblance of comfort and support."

"As you should have," Sarah said as she tenderly squeezed his arm where her hand still rested, "but it must have been painful to just sit there and watch her die. No wonder you have not used this room."

Jareth nodded but remained silent just staring into Sarah's comforting eyes letting his pain fade away. In return Sarah was held by Jareth's eyes, by the sadness and the need to comfort him.

For a long time the only sound in the stillness of the room was the crackling of the fire until Mary Elizabeth started crying drawing their attention to the child.

Both of their heads turned towards the babe as Sarah instinctively rose to go attend to her with Jareth following close behind her.

"Hmm, I think someone needs a diaper change," Sarah said as she checked Mary Elizabeth's diaper.

Holding his arms out Jareth said, "Here, let me."

Sarah shook her head, "Thanks, but I've got it. Why don't you go sit back down? I need to go get her bag anyway since we left it in the throne room."

"Do you remember the way," Jareth questioned.

Sarah thought for a minute then realized she didn't remember. "Um, no. I guess you showed me so many different places of the castle that I forgot."

Jareth smiled. "Ahh, I'll take care of that." He waved his hand causing the Mary Elizabeth's diaper bag to appear beside his feet.

As he picked up the bag, he told her, "I'm at least going to help you."

"It doesn't take two to change a diaper," Sarah countered.

"I never said it did," was Jareth's reply.

Sarah conceded knowing he had made up his mind and allowed him to assist her.

Once they finished and placed Mary Elizabeth back into the playpen, they settled back down into their seats.

Jareth smiled as he said, "I know my mother would have wanted this room used again and she would have loved you and Mary Elizabeth and so would have my father."

Sarah smiled back at him, "Thank you. I am honored you think so. And I am honored to be allowed to use her room."

"It's your room, now. Anytime you want to visit," Jareth told her.

"Jareth, I …," Sarah started, "I don't know …"

"Sarah, please," Jareth stopped her, "All I am saying is please come and visit at times. And I am not saying come to just visit me. After all, you have other friends here that would be thrilled to see you from time to time. Besides, unless you tell me to stop, I will still come to visit you."

Thinking about it, she knew that she did miss the Underground and her friends there so she nodded and eagerly agreed, "Okay, I will."

"Now is there anything else you want to know," Jareth asked, "Anything that I didn't mention that you want to know more about?"

Tilting her head slightly, she said, "Yes, you mentioned the battle with the kingdom of Malum when telling me about your father, but you never said what happened. I assume that your side won, but what happened to the leader and its people?"

Jareth answered her question and they continued to talk well into the night until Jareth found himself once again carrying a sleeping Sarah to her bed and tucking her in underneath the covers. He smiled as he looked down at her and could not resist kissing her on the forehead before departing her room.

He then went back to the sitting room and collected a sleeping Mary Elizabeth taking her with him to his study so he could watch her while he worked. Since he knew he would be up for a while, he saw no need in putting Mary Elizabeth in Sarah's room where the baby might wake up crying disturbing Sarah's sleep.

He smiled down at Mary Elizabeth in the little wooden crib that had been in his family for generations before sitting down to work hoping to accomplish his task at hand.

* * *

Guaranteed most thought the room was going to belong to Lorena. :-)


	27. Chapter 27

The Tragedy

Chapter 27

* * *

When Sarah woke up in the dark room disoriented looking around trying to recall where she was and how she got there. Then, she remembered she was in Jareth's castle thanks to her brother's meddling.

She remembered that Jareth and she had been in the sitting room talking but that was the last thing she recollected. Sarah soon realized that she must have fallen asleep and Jareth must have carried her to the bedroom he mentioned preparing for her. She thought of how it seem to be becoming a habit of theirs, she falling asleep and Jareth putting her to bed. She expressed a nervous little laugh to herself.

Sarah then started feeling around on the nightstand looking for some kind of light not certain what she would find. She was quite certain that Jareth's castle probably did not have electricity so was not surprise to find what felt like an oil lamp on the table.

She carefully removed the lamp's chimney glass and searched for something to light the wick. Sarah felt around for several minutes only finding two hard lumps of rock. Finding nothing else on the table, she assumed this must be the way of creating a fire here so knowing only a little of how people in the past use to strike flint together to create a fire thanks to a favorite book series of hers, she set to work.

She slammed the two pieces together carefully keeping her fingers out of harm's way. She saw a little spark but nothing more. She tried again. Another spark but it did not even touch the wick. However, Sarah persisted with the endeavor but try as she might she could not succeed. A few times the spark caught the wick but went out too quickly before the wick could maintain the flame. Then, finally as she was about to give up the wick caught and the fire grew. Sarah carefully slide the chimney glass back onto the lamp thinking how nice it would have been to at least have had a set of matches let alone a lighter to have made the task easier.

Sarah rose from her bed then and looked around. Sarah was surprised and just a little worried not seeing Mary Elizabeth in there but knew that Jareth probably had her and that she was safe with him.

Sarah then noticed that instead of being in the clothes she had wore yesterday, she was in a long silk forest green nightgown. She looked around for her clothes but could not find them. Nevertheless, she did find a robe lying over a chair and slippers at the foot of it and quickly put them on.

Sarah then looked around the room to see the bed with the nightstand, a vanity table with a chair, a large cabinet, a large dresser, a hope chest at the foot of the bed, a couple of comfortable looking chairs, and a two doors. She also saw on the walls several paintings that looked like they had the same artist as those from the sitting room meaning that they were Jareth's mother's paintings.

Walking over to one of the doors, she gently pulled it open finding a washroom. She then closed the door and walked towards the other door picking up the oil lamp on her way. She knew that she could probably just call for Jareth, but it case he was asleep she did not want to wake him. Therefore, she just hoped she could find her way around the castle and locate where Jareth was with her child. She knew that her child was safe with him, but that still did not sate her need to check on her.

Quietly she crept down the hallway. Several doors down, she noticed a light coming from under the door. Upon reaching the door, she gently knocked on the door. Upon hearing no reply, she slowing pushed the door opened and entered the room carefully shutting the door so as not to make much noise.

Moving further into the room she had to smile at what she saw. Jareth was passed out asleep on a desk with papers, scrolls, and books scattered everywhere and beside him on the floor was Mary Elizabeth in the little wooden crib she had seen him use earlier from the crystal in her hospital room. She walked over and checked on her daughter. Seeing her fast asleep, Sarah moved to the desk inquisitive about what Jareth had been doing.

She picked up an open book reading its contents. It seemed to be a history of the labyrinth itself. Although, she wanted to continue reading it, she also wanted to see what else what there and decided to ask Jareth if she could borrow the book later. Sarah continued to poke around in Jareth's materials on top of the desk finding more histories and tales of the castle, the labyrinth, the Underground, and even the kingdom of Malum.

As Sarah kept nosing around, she accidently knocked a book off the table. It hit the floor near her feet with a thud and Jareth startled awake lunging in the direction of the noise and at Sarah. Sarah jumped back in wide-eyed alarm at the sudden attack.

Jareth came to a sudden halt as he saw who it was and took in a deep breath. Then, with an apologetic look on his face, he told Sarah, "Please don't sneak up on me when I am sleeping like that."

"Sorry," Sarah replied still breathing heavy from fright.

Noticing her anxiety, Jareth reached out to her taking her in his embrace wrapping his arms around her placing one hand at the back of her hand softly gliding it down the back of her head and he laid her head on his chest. He continued to soothe her repetitively bringing his hand back to the top of her head and running it down her hair. He was surprised when he felt her arms close around his torso.

Being held and calmed in such an embrace, Sarah found herself instinctively wrapping her arms around Jareth trying to hold onto the comfort she was feeling from him. She knew that Jareth had not meant to frighten her, but could not help being startled by the suddenness of seeing Jareth assailing towards her like that.

"It's okay, Sarah. You're fine," Jareth whispered, "You just surprised me is all. Although rare, assassination attempts do happen here and I have to be careful. I never know when someone might try something. Please, don't be frightened by my reaction, I didn't mean to scare you, my dear."

Sarah couldn't help herself when she started crying tears dripping onto Jareth's top.

"Sarah, are you crying," Jareth asked concerned.

Sarah didn't saying anything but continued crying unable to stop herself.

"Sarah, please stop," Jareth pleaded, "I didn't mean to frighten you so. Please tell me what I can do to help." He hugged her closer hoping it might help.

"I can't help myself," Sarah sobbed. She then breathed in deeply, "I'm sorry. It's not your fault."

"What do you mean," Jareth insisted, "I'm the one who scared you, so of course it's my fault."

Sarah picked her head up off his chest shaking it from side to side, "No, it not. I've been having these spells ever since the … ever since that … that night," she sobbed.

Jareth realized she must have been meaning the night of the attack on her and her family and that his jumping at her had set off the memory of the night. "Oh, my dear," he breathed, "No wondered you're crying. Go ahead and cry if you need too." He continued to hold her until her tears stopped and she began to gently pull away from him.

"Are you okay, now," Jareth asked as he carefully examined her expression.

Sarah just nodded avoiding Jareth's eyes.

Jareth noticed her evasion but knew it would do no good to press her. Instead he inquired, "Have you talked to anyone about this? Does Toby know?"

Sarah shook her head signaling a denial as said informed him, "No and I'll be fine. Toby doesn't need to know about this. Understand?"

Jareth grimaced, "Sarah, I won't tell Toby but at least promise me that if you'll talk to someone. If you don't want to talk to someone else, please, please promise you'll come and talk to me. I'll always be willing to listen or just give you a shoulder to cry on. Promise?"

"Okay," Sarah nodded, "I guess that would be okay. I been having less and less of them lately anyway. Now, tell me what you were doing in here. You have things scattered everywhere."

"Oh, just a little research," he assured her and attempted to distract her, "I thought you were having trouble remembering your way around the castle?"

"Well, I am but I wanted to check on Mary Elizabeth and I didn't know if you would be awake or not so I did not want to call out for you. Therefore, I took my chances and luckily saw the light coming from under the door," she answered him.

Jareth nodded, "I guess it's a good thing that my rooms aren't too far from yours. How did you sleep? You are up mighty early in the morning."

"Good, I guess," she shrugged, "The last thing I remember was being in the sitting room and the next I am waking up in a strange dark room in a nightgown that I've never seen before. By the way, thanks for I didn't pack my clothes in the haste of getting Mary Elizabeth's things and I did not think I would be spending the night, but question, how exactly did I get into the nightgown?"

"Magically, of course," Jareth said, "After all, I am a proper gentleman if nothing else. I hope you like the nightgown and found your room comfortable. Let me know if there is anything I can do to make your stay here easier. I know you already need clothes for the remainder of your stay."

"Well, the clothes can be gotten from my house and the nightgown and room is lovely, but is there any way of getting a thing of matches or a lighter for the oil lamp," she inquired gesturing to the lamp on Jareth's desk, "I used the two pieces of what I guess is flint on my table to light it after several attempts, but I am surprised that there is not an easier way or a magical way."

Jareth snorted suppressing a laugh, "Yes, there is a magical way, but I couldn't very well tell you while you were asleep. Actually, you do use the flint but they have been imbued with a magical spell that all you have to do is hold the flint to the wick and say 'inlumina tenebras'. After all, not everyone in the Underground has magical gifts so long ago the ones with magic made it easier for everyone to start a fire by discovering how to allow non-magical people to call upon the fire that can be created using the flint. In order to do so, they simply instilled the flint with some of their own magic to aid in the process so that the magic comes from within the nodule. Since then, we with magic have continued to do so."

Upon finishing his explanation he picked up the oil lamp from his desk, blowing out the light, and removing the chimney glass before setting the base back on the desk. He then opened his desk drawer and fished out a piece of flint handing it to Sarah, "Here, you try."

Sarah took the lump of flint and held it to the wick. "Inlum …," she started then looked at Jareth.

"Inlumina tenebras," he repeated.

"Inlumina tenebras," Sarah mimicked and the wick lit into a small flame. Sarah smiled, "Well, that was certainly a lot easier," she said before replacing the chimney glass onto the oil lamp. As she was doing so her attention was caught again by the mess on Jareth's desk.

"So, you didn't tell me, what were you researching?"

"Oh nothing," Jareth replied waving his hand in a nonchalant way.

Sarah's eyes narrowed, "You trying to hide something from me Jareth. You have been so open and honest with me lately that I can tell you are trying to avoid telling me something. What is it?"

Jareth pulled his lips tight before exhaling, "Oh nothing really. I was just researching the histories of the land to see if I could find the origin of your books and figurines. I just didn't what to bother you with it."

"Is that all," Sarah questioned still feeling like Jareth was hiding something from her, "I would enjoy helping you. It would at least give me something to do while I'm here and would allow me to learn more about the Underground this way. Besides, two heads are better than one and we could get more research done together."

"Okay," Jareth agreed but seemed reluctant to do so, "However, there are things you may learn that you do not like."

"I can handle that," Sarah declared pulling a nearby chair to the desk and plopping down in it. Jareth sit back down in his chair and handed Sarah a book, "Here, start on this one."

The two poured through countless books and scrolls but had found nothing yet only taking breaks to attend to Mary Elizabeth and to eat a meal Jareth had brought in. Sarah had even allowed Jareth after persistent requesting by him to magically change her clothes into a long light purple dress.

It was several hours later when Sarah picked up a particular scroll that seemed to have fallen under the edge of the desk and was reading it when Jareth almost snatched it away from her.

"My apologies," he said, "but you do not want to read that one. Besides I have already been through it and there is nothing in it. Maybe we should stop for I think we have been through them all anyway."

"Sure," she said as she pushed her chair back and stretched seemingly obvious to Jareth's apprehension about Sarah seeing the scroll she recently held. Jareth breathed a sigh of relief as Sarah went to go pick up Mary Elizabeth from the playpen where they had moved her earlier.

"I think I need some fresh air anyway," Sarah said, "I'm going to take Mary Elizabeth to the garden and walk for a while. Will you join us?"

"In a little while, just let me clean up first," Jareth answered then added, "Remember the entrance to the garden is to the end of the hallway and to your right."

"Okay, thanks, but are you certain you don't want help," Sarah asked, "I can stay and help first."

"Thanks, but I'll get it," Jareth said then added with a wink, "Besides I can use magic to help speed up my process some."

Sarah smiled and shook her head, "You and your magic." Then, she departed.

Jareth clutched to scroll that he had purposely lain underneath the edge of the table trying to keep it from Sarah's view. He did not use magic to move it somewhere for this study had a spell placed around it for generations to keep important documents from being taken from the room with the summoning of the countered spell that could not have been done with Sarah in there.

He briefly opened the scroll then quickly rolled it and went to a dark corner of the room and said a spell that opened a secret bookcase in the wall storing even more vital documents and placed the scroll within the shelves before sealing the bookcase up from view again.

The document he had hidden away had been the only document that mentioned Lorena and what had happened to her and Jareth did not want Sarah to find out about her. He was not worried that Sarah would hate him after hearing his side, but he had reasons for not wanting her to know about Lorena or the incident itself.

He waved a hand magically placing the books and scrolls back to their rightful positions on the shelves before quitting the room to go join Sarah in the garden glad he had kept her from being able to read it without her seeming suspicion about why.


	28. Chapter 28

The Tragedy

Chapter 28

* * *

When Sarah woke up, she was surprised to see a note carefully laid on the table beside her bed. She sat up in the bed glancing over at where her daughter slept before picking up the note. When she opened it, she found that it was written in an elegant script. The ends of her mouth curved slightly up at the beautiful handwriting, the first she had ever seen of Jareth's, as she read the contents of the note.

_My Dear Sarah,_

_I did not wish to disturb your sleep. I left you this note with my regret that I will not be able to join you today for I have important business to attend to in parts of the kingdom. In my absence, I have a surprise waiting for you in the sitting room once you are dressed. I will miss your presence today and promise to be back in time to partake in our evening meal together. Hope you have an enjoyable day._

_ Affectionately Yours,_

_ Jareth_

Sarah found herself a little dismayed that Jareth was occupied and would not be keeping her company that day. Almost a week had passed since she had came to the Underground and every morning after that first Jareth had met her at her door and had been her constant companion. Directly after breakfast each morning, they would take walks in the garden with Jareth presenting her with a bundle of flowers from the garden for the sitting room every day. Sarah had become use to accepting the flowers and now smiled with delight when Jareth gave them to her.

Afterwards, they would spend hours talking as they either roamed through the castle or sat in the sitting room. Sarah nearly knew the castle by heart now except for the couple of rooms she noticed Jareth avoided taking her to. She realized what these two rooms were so it didn't bother her. One was the room with the mirror for she remembered the staircase when they had passed by it and she knew exactly why Jareth avoided that room.

And the other room, well, she knew it must be Jareth's bedroom for it was not far from her room. She smiled at that thought wondering what Jareth's bedroom looked like for it had been dark that night she looked in on Mary Elizabeth and Jareth with the crystal from her hospital bed. She couldn't help but to be curious and wondered if she coyly asked what was in that room if Jareth would show her or just tell her not opening the door. She realized Jareth had a right to keep his room or any rooms in the castle shut off to her. He had the right to his privacy but she wondered if the real reason for not showing her his room was so she wouldn't feel like he still expected something to eventually happen between them even though he made a great effort to just be friendly. However, no matter how much he guarded his display of feelings around Sarah, his eyes could not lie.

Sarah swallowed hard as she shook away the thought as she threw the blanket back getting out of bed. As she went to the cabinet to pull out clothes for the day, she occupied her mind with was surprise Jareth could have in store for her. She knew it could not be Toby for Jareth probably would have waited around if her stubborn brother had finally decided to complete the labyrinth. She rolled her eyes at the thought of her brother as she pulled out a knee-length burgundy gown with sleeves that draped loosely down the arms and grabbed a pair of solid black tights from a drawer. Jareth had convincingly talked her into wearing clothes that were more appropriate to the Underground. The clothes felt a little awkward at first, but now she had to smile as she looked at herself in the mirror remembering how she used to dress up when acting out the "Labyrinth".

As she crossed from her bedroom to the sitting room with Mary Elizabeth, she again wondered with eager glee what was waiting for her. She opened the door peering in.

She smiled at what she saw.

"Ahh, Sarah, I thought you were going to keep me waiting all day. Just like a female," Hoggle said in a gruff tone.

Sarah laughed saying in a sarcastic voice, "You never change do you, Hoggle. Well, I guess I'm glad to see you too!"

Hoggle got a remorseful look on his face. "Sarah knows I am always happy to see my friend. How are you and that little one of yours?"

"We're good and you," Sarah responded.

"Same as usual, but a little surprised at today's turn of events."

Sarah gave him a curious look, "Why?"

"Well, having your sleep interrupted by your king is always startling," Hoggle started, "but that wasn't what surprised me the most. It was how he was decent and asked instead of commanding me to do something. Don't get me wrong, Hoggle would have been glad to visit you, but it is nice to be asked."

Sarah smiled in agreement, "I'm certain it is." She thought about how Jareth had said he had failed to take care of the kingdom the way he had wanted by using fear instead of kindness and wondered if he was now trying to remedy that.

Hoggle nodded, "It certainly is. Sarah's a good influence on Jareth. The king has changed."

Sarah stopped on the way to sit down frozen in her tracks. "I'm sure it's just Jareth wants to be a better king and it has nothing to do with me." As she sat down, she knew it had been a lie or at least not the entire truth.

"Shows what you know," Hoggle huffed, "Hoggle's no dummy. Hoggle sees. He's doing it for you, because of you."

She turned to Hoggle who was now sitting as well and countered, "Other than for my friends what he does in his kingdom does not affect me for I am leaving once my stubborn brother decides to finally complete the labyrinth so Jareth is not trying to be a better king for me. My friendship may have helped him to see the errors of his ways for he did say when we were talking one night that he had been lonely and angry which had kept him from being the king he had wanted to be."

"Hmmm, lonely and angry, he didn't become this way until after…," Hoggle murmured like he was lost in thought then shaking his head said, "Yeah, I guess you may be right. Either way it is a good thing. But he does care for you, you can't deny that."

"No, I can't," Sarah agreed looking down than back up, "but Jareth knows I just think of him as a friend."

Hoggle just grinned, "But that doesn't change his feelings for you or what he is willingly to do for you."

"True, but any true friendship would be the same way."

"Aww, but not all friends would go to the ends that Jareth has."

"Don't get me wrong. I am extremely grateful for what Jareth has done, but I believe any other friend would have done as much if it was within their power. After all, look at what Jareth really did. After being brought Mary Elizabeth, when he could not find me he went to my brother to find me. Any friend would have done that. And taking care of my daughter while I was in the hospital is something else most true friends would have done as well. So in truth he has done no more than what a true friend would have done. Would you have done the same, would you not?" Sarah looked over at Hoggle already knowing the answer to her question for Hoggle was her friend and had helped her out before even though he had been ordered by Jareth to do the exact opposite.

Hoggle appeared a bit disappointed at Sarah even thinking he would not have been there for her. "Of course, Sarah, I would always help you. How could you even ask your old friend that? But that is not what I meant for you do not know how much Jareth has really done."

Sarah pulled her lips tight a little grimed faced. "I sorry I didn't mean for it to sound like that Hoggle but I was just trying to prove a point. But what do you mean then? What more has Jareth done that I do not know about?"

Hoggle's eyes widen as he realized he had said too much. He now comprehended the Sarah did not know that Jareth had went after the two men that had attacked her as he also remembered how Jareth had insisted that he was going to let the police in Sarah's world handle the situation. Jareth did not want her to know and would be upset if she did.

"No Sarah, I have said too much already."

Sarah eyed him. "Hoggle, don't keep secrets from me. If it involves me, I believe I have the right to know."

"But Jareth…," Hoggle stammered nervously.

"I'll take care of Jareth. Now, Hoggle, you are my friend right for a friend would tell another friend if something happened that they should know. And this apparently involves me so I should know what it is." Sarah gave Hoggle a look that revealed that she would be relentless until he gave in.

"That not fair! You know I am your friend. Jareth must have had his reasons for not telling you."

"Hoggle…," Sarah reproached, "You are just trying to stall. Now, tell me."

Sighing he gave in. "Okay, Sarah. I'll tell you, but you do not play fair. He sent the group of goblins that found Mary Elizabeth back out to find the men that had attacked you. They found the men and Jareth went there to confront them."

"What happened? What did he do?" Sarah wasn't sure she wanted to know the answer, but she knew that not knowing would be even worse.

"Nobody knows." Hoggle was not going to tell her about the screaming that could not be heard coming from one of the oubliettes in the tunnels below the labyrinth.

"Thanks for letting me know." Sarah then changed the subject letting Hoggle think she had dismissed the conversation. After some more time had passed, she asked Hoggle if he could watch Mary Elizabeth for a little while she took care of an errand.

Walking down the hallway towards the throne room, she wondered what Jareth had done to those men. She knew what Jareth's temper could be like and that made her shiver knowing that whatever he had done it could not be pleasant, but she had to know.

Upon reaching the throne room, she called out, "Jareth, I need to speak with you."

Nothing happened.

"Now, please."

Another minute passed then Jareth appeared in front of her with a look of confusion, annoyance, and concern.

"What is it Sarah? Didn't you see the note I left you? I was in the middle of dealing with a concern of one the kingdom's citizens." He paused for a minute then with a look of worry added, "Or, is something wrong?"

"I should not take much of your time and I am sorry to disturb you, but I needed to talk to you about something I just learned. Now, before I tell you what it is I want you to promise me you will not get mad and take it out on Hoggle for I pressured him into telling me. He did not want to but I was able to get him to. You promise?"

Wary of what Sarah was about to ask, Jareth reluctantly agreed.

"Okay, what is it, my dear?"

Sarah took a deep breath preparing herself for what Jareth's reaction might be and what he had done to the men.

"Jareth, what did you do to the men that attacked me?"

Jareth's face harden at her words.


	29. Chapter 29

The Tragedy

Chapter 29

* * *

"Hoggle," Jareth gritted his teeth as spoke the name in a rough voice.

Jareth rotated slightly and started walking towards the door but was blocked as Sarah quickly stepped in front of him.

"Don't you go and threaten Hoggle," Sarah demanded. "You promised me."

At seeing the steel in Sarah's eyes, Jareth halted his advance. "He shouldn't have told you."

"He only said that I did not know how much you have done for me. I forced the rest out of him aware that he was hiding something from me. Something you shouldn't have hidden. Now, what did you do to the men?" Sarah stood solid in front of him crossing her arms over her chest.

"I only hid it from you because I knew it would upset you. Besides you were still mad with me at the time. And, I knew you would not have wanted me to take matters into my own hands but I was determined to see justice done." Jareth's demeanor softened a bit as he spoke to her but not by much as his purposely evaded her question about the exact fate of the men.

Sarah shook her head. "I can understand not telling me then for I would not have even talk to you, but afterwards you should have. And as far as not wanting you to take vengeance into your own hands, you're right; you should have left it to the police."

"Humph," Jareth snorted, "They would have never found them."

"Maybe not, but it is not you're place," Sarah countered.

"It is not my place to protect the ones I love. Sarah I cannot agree with that and I will not apologize for it. If you are mad at me for it then you will just have to stay mad."

Sarah shut her eyes and bit her lip before opening them to respond. "Jareth, I appreciate why you did it. I cannot be angry that you wanted justice for what happened to us. I just believe that you should have let the authorities handle it."

Relaxing his shoulders letting them drop, he came over to Sarah and took her hand. "Sarah you have to understand and remember that in my land I am the authority. I am use to handling justice when necessary. I am a creature of habit. So even though these men did not live in my land, I could not help but to carry justice out as I normally would have here."

Sarah nodded. "I understand. I guess I am just use to the rules and beliefs of my world and forget that your world is a lot different."

"So are we good?" Jareth smiled at her hoping the conversation was over. "I do have responsibilities to get back to."

"About the reason you didn't tell me and about you taking justice into your own hands, yes, but you still haven't told me what you did to them." Sarah eyed him waiting for an answer.

He let go of Sarah's hand and turned away. "Forget about it Sarah. You don't want to know."

"But I need to know," Sarah pleaded, "Please tell me. If you don't I might imagine something even worse. It will drive me crazy not knowing."

Jareth remained silent.

Sarah walked around him and turned to face him. "Jareth tell me or I will keep asking you until you do." She had a determined look on her face and Jareth knew there would be no stopping her until she found out so he decided to let her know only part of it hoping it would satisfy her need to know.

Jareth closed his eyes. "Sarah, I will tell you what I did with one of them but not the other. The boy, Sam, the one who actually shot you, was remorseful. His partner started fussing at him over finding out that Mary Elizabeth was alive, which the man apparently had planned to do but the boy offered to do it instead to save her placing her in the alley where my goblins found her. During the argument, Sam declared that he could not have let the other man kill her knowing he had just shot you while not realizing that you just wanted the child."

Sarah eyes got wide. "He wanted to ... her."

Jareth nodded. "Yes, but Sam risked disobeying the man to protect her. When the man found this out he went to strike him in anger at what he had done but I stopped the man feeling protective of the boy. After I temporarily place the man somewhere else to be dealt with later I asked the boy why he had chosen to help her. He told me it was to try to fix his mistake of shooting you and to give her a better chance at life than what he had."

Jareth paused, and then continued.

"Realizing the rough life that the boy must have had I decided to give him a chance to redeem himself and to make his life better. I took him to another city warning him to start an honest decent life and to never step foot near your location again. I told him I would be checking up on him to make certain he stays in line."

Sarah was amazed at what she heard. Jareth really had done justice and it was nothing at all like what she had imagined he might do.

"You still seem to surprise me Jareth. Just when I think I know you, you do something I would never have imagined. I'm glad you gave him a second chance to straighten his life out. I know I should hate the boy, but considering what you told me I can't especially not after he saved my child. I hope he does manage to turn his life around. Have you checked on him since?"

Sarah's words elated Jareth and he was glad she knew about Sam. "I'm glad you approve of what I did and yes I have. He is still living at the homeless shelter where I dropped him off, but he has found a job at a local diner as a busboy cleaning tables, sweeping floors, and taking out the garbage."

"Good," Sarah said and then asked the question that Jareth dreaded, "Now, what did you do to the man. You have already told me about the boy so you may as well go ahead and tell me about the man."

"Sarah, I told you that I would tell you what I did to one but not the other."

"Yes and I told you that I would keep asking until you tell me. Jareth if you already told me about Sam, then why won't you tell me about the other one," Sarah questioned.

"Because you would find what I did to him extremely cruel. Let's just leave it at the fact that I punished him according to what I believed he deserved."

"And what does that mean," Sarah questioned.

"It means that I took care of him. I punished him for his crimes. Just leave it at that Sarah. I'm begging you." Jareth was tense and Sarah could tell it.

"Why? Why won't you just tell me? I know you don't you me to know because whatever you did was cruel, but that doesn't matter to me. I just need to know. So just tell me." Sarah held his eyes until he turned away from her.

Jareth brought his hand up to his mouth resting it there before letting it drop again. "I… I can't."

"Why not," Sarah demanded.

He abruptly spun around to face her. "Because I am afraid!"

Sarah could believe what she was hearing. "Afraid of what? Jareth, how can you possibly be afraid of telling me," she asked in a gentle but insistence tone.

He grabbed both of her hands in his looking into her eyes with his own pleading eyes. "I'm afraid of what you will think of me Sarah. I have strived so hard to show you I'm not the person you use to think I was. We have come so far Sarah. We have become friends. I just don't want you to go back to thinking of me as that terrible, heartless person you use to."

Squeezing his hands tight, she returned his look and vowed, "I could never do that Jareth. Not anymore. No matter what you have done, I now know the real you. I know you are a good, caring man who would do anything to help and protect others who depend on you or need you."

"But you already did," he whispered.

Sarah looked down ashamed. "I know and I'm sorry about that. I was wrong. And I know I can never change the way I reacted to what happened. I, I…"

Jareth let go of her right hand, cupping his placing it under her chin gently lifting her face back up to his.

He gave her a reassuring smile. "Sarah we don't need to go through this again. You were in pain. I accept that and I accept my part in what happen."

"Thank you," Sarah replied meekly.

Shaking his head, "That's not necessary, my dear."

"I know, but thank you any way." She smiled at him warming his heart.

Sarah then took a deep breath. "But I still need to know how you punished that man."

His face fell as he let his hand drop from her chin. "Sarah I don't want to hurt you."

"Jareth, you won't. Besides even if it does we will move beyond it. If we can move pass everything that has happened between us in the past then surely we can this. Moving pass our hurt is what has made us closer."

She squeezed the hand that still remained in hers and pleaded, "Please Jareth, I need to know. David was my husband and I loved him. I need to know how the man that murdered him was punished for his crime. It's important to me."

Looking down into her eyes, Jareth saw the desperate anguish in her eyes, the need to know. He could see that she would not stop until she found out and that the not knowing was killing her. The look in her eyes sent a pang of anguish to his heart as he reluctantly decided to tell her despite the consequences.

"Okay Sarah, but let's sit down first."

He led her to the stone steps and they sit down turning to face one another.

"You want to know what I have done with him, you want the truth, and I want to be honest with you. The honest truth of what I have done is a little brutal so if you want me to stop at anytime, just let me know."

She nodded.

"First off I have placed him in an oubliette in the deepest darkest area of the tunnels underneath labyrinth to muffle his screams. However, they can still be heard as he cries out in his pain, terror, misery, and whatever else he may be feeling as the sentence of his punishment endures."

Jareth was silent for a little while waiting before Sarah encouraged quietly, "Go on. What is his punishment?"

Jareth's eyes darkened. "His sentence is to feel the pain he has caused a 1000 times before he dies permanently. In this process, he sees the people he cares about most being shot."

"Jareth," Sarah interrupted shocked.

"It's only an image of them, my dear," he reassured her.

"Oh, of course, it just took me by surprise. I didn't think you would. Sorry, please continue." Sarah bit her lip hoping Jareth didn't think she believed he would have done such a thing.

"Then, he watches as they die restrained so he cannot even go to them and comfort them. Following that he is shot for every time he has ever shot someone. He also feels the pain and damage of every time he has physically harmed someone in any other way even if it was indirectly like when you feel down the hill after Sam shot you or even if he planned to in some way."

He paused while gauging Sarah reaction. Sarah seemed fine and motioned for him to continue.

"He then suffers a magically prolonged death as he sees in his mind all those he has ever hurt and feels the pain and suffering of those that loved them as they continually ask him questions like why did you kill him and what is going to happen to me without my mother. By the time he dies, he is weeping and screaming with sorrow and misery begging for mercy. Those are the screams that pierce the tunnels the worst. He then waits until the next time to repeat the cycle over and over again having nightmare all night long. The nightmares are not a part of the punishment but the suffering of his own at what is happening to him and of what he has done."

Sarah was silent as she just stared at him. She then closed her eyes but still did not say anything looking blanched in her complexion.

"Sarah, are you okay? I didn't want to tell you. I knew it would upset you." He watched her with concern afraid of what she was thinking and feeling.

She gave him a grim, weak smile. "I'm okay. You're right, it is cruel."

"Now, I told you and you promised…," Jareth began.

Sarah interrupted him before he could get any farther. "I just said it was cruel. I did not say you were wrong or anything. Just thinking about anyone, even one such as that, that monster, going through that kind of torture is hard. Is that it? Is that everything?"

"Yes," Jareth said quickly almost too quickly Sarah noted.

"You are trying to keep something from me. What is it," Sarah demanded.

Jareth sighed, "I don't need to tell you everything. The only part I have left out, you are better off not knowing. Trust me, my dear."

"Jareth, I need to know everything. I won't rest until I do." Sarah's face had a determined look on it.

"Fine," Jareth huffed out, "but I won't apologize for trying to avoid telling you this. Remember when I said he suffers the pain of anything he even thought of doing to another?"

"Yes," Sarah answered.

"Well, while laying there from being shot his head is being bashed in."

"And…," Sarah probed.

"And what? I've told you everything," Jareth said harshly trying to convince her that he had told her everything.

"Why is his brain being bashed in so important?" Sarah watched him narrowing her eyebrows.

Jareth shut his eyes not wanting to see Sarah's face because he knew the pain that would be there as she heard why the murdering fiend's head was being slammed with a rock.

"Because that is the way he was planning on killing your daughter. Sam's the only reason he didn't because he thought the boy was going to do it instead." Jareth felt sick as he heard her the sharp intake of air come from her.

Opening his eyes, he asked, "Are you okay, my dear? I didn't want you to know."

"I'm fine. Mary Elizabeth's alive and okay so it doesn't matter now. The worst that can happen is me having a nightmare about it happening." She shrugged her shoulders at him trying to cover just how bad the news had hit her. She wanted to get up and run to where her daughter slept in the other room but controlled herself knowing that seeing her upset would also upset Jareth and she did not want to do that to him especially not after how afraid of what her reaction would be he had been earlier.

Jareth shook his head. "And that is exactly why you should have left it alone. You are relentless, too much so for your own good. And probably the only one in too many years that can get me to do what she wants and tell when I am avoiding or hiding something. I know now that if you are around, you will not let me get away with keeping anything from you."

"Only things that involve me or my family," she corrected him, "Other secrets are yours to keep unless that is they affect me or ones I care about."


	30. Chapter 30

The Tragedy

Chapter 30

* * *

"Sarah, I can stay," Jareth told her.

She shook her head. "No, I'm fine. You have your responsibilities to your inhabitants."

Jareth frowned a little. "I do, however, I would rather stay with you. If you need me, just call for me, my dear. Till Tonight." He smiled, squeezing her hands as leaned giving her a quick peck on the cheek before disappearing.

Sarah found herself a little startled by the feel of his lips on her cheek and the warmth that was left behind after he had departed.

After several moments she finally rose to head back to the sitting room to check on her daughter and Hoggle.

When she opened the door she had to smile as she saw both of them fast asleep. Her daughter was curled up the corner of her little playpen. Hoggle was slumped down in the chair in front of the fireplace.

She gently closed the door not wanting to disturb them and walked to the bookcase to choose something to read. Finding a book about the early history of the Underground, she selected it. As she removed it from the bookshelf, she noticed a strange design that stood out of the wood remaining in the gap. She reached her hand to the back of the bookshelf feeling around and found it would rotate. Curious, she continued to turn the object. Suddenly the bookshelf moved to the side with a low creek revealing a dark opening.

She looked back to see if it had disturbed the others' sleep. It hadn't so she reached for a small table lantern near to her and lit it with the magically imbue flint. She walked into the opening wanting to see what it was and what was in there. As she continued down the dark hallway, she noticed the level of the floor dropping.

She paused for a moment wondering if she should go back, but decided that Hoggle was there if Mary Elizabeth woke up and needed something. Beside she was not planning on being long, so she continued down the hallway.

After a while, the sides of the tunnel begun to have a torch every few feet revealing more of the tunnel to Sarah. At this she noticed that although this was not the section of the tunnels her and Hoggle had been in the last time that indeed she was within the tunnels underneath the labyrinth. She realized now that these tunnels must also run underneath the castle and serve as an escape in case of great need.

Upon realizing where she was, she shuddered at the thought of accidently coming upon the area of the tunnels where the oubliette was that held the monster that had murdered her husband. At this she turned around not wanting to hear his screams unsure of how she might react and how it might affect her.

Having not even taken a step yet a voice came from behind her.

"Hello, Sarah, it is nice to finally meet you."

Sarah abruptly turned around to see a small woman that she could tell had once been a beauty woman but now dressed in rags with an unkempt appearance.

"Who are you," she questioned as she tried to calm her racing heart.

The woman stepped a few steps closer as Sarah retreated the same amount in response.

"My name is of no importance."

Sarah eyed her warily. "Um, I sorry but I must be going."

"Ah, yes, back to your child."

Sarah's eyes widened.

"Relax my child. She is still safe with Hoggle and will remain so. I only want to speak to you."

"Okay, what do you want?" Sarah thoughts were racing with panic unsure of this strange woman.

The woman smiled. "Just a message. Ask the king who Lorena is."

"If the king wanted me to know who she was then he would have mentioned her. Otherwise, he is entitled to his privacy." Sarah crossed her arms obstinately in front of her. She was determined not to undermine what she had just told Jareth about his having a right to keep certain secrets and she could not imagine how this Lorena could have anything to do with her.

With sad eyes the woman added, "Well then, just ask him what her death has to do with you."

This took Sarah by surprise. "What? What could her death possibly have to do with me?"

"That is for the king to tell you."

"But if you know, then why can't you just tell me?"

The woman smiled, "Because I will be lucky if I don't face his wrath for telling you this much."

"Then why did you tell me," Sarah scowled at her annoyed knowing that she would now have to find out what this was about but not wanting to see harm come to this woman, however meddlesome she was.

"Because you need to know the truth and I no longer fear the king. A death would be much more peaceful then living with my sorrow. Indeed, that is so true that if the king is a fool who cannot figure out who told you then I guess I do need to leave you with a name so he will know. Although, the king is the only one besides for myself that even remembers my true name, I am know to all as the Mystic."

Noticing the look in Sarah's eyes, she added, "Ahh, I see the king has mentioned me."

Sarah nodded. With that the woman just reminded Sarah, "Do not forget now, her name was Lorena." Then she was gone.

At that Sarah turned and raced back to the sitting room closing the bookshelf doorway behind her checking on her daughter before collapsing into a chair. As her breathing slowed and she was able to think, she realized that there was probably no danger because if the woman had wanted to harm her or her child she probably would have already done so especially since she did not seem afraid of what Jareth might do to her.

She had been tempted to call for Jareth the rest of the afternoon but decided to wait after what had happened earlier that day.

Once Jareth arrived back to the castle Sarah bided her time waiting until after Hoggle had left for Jareth had asked him to join them for their evening meal if he wished, which he did. It wasn't until after they were back in the sitting room and Sarah had placed Mary Elizabeth down in the playpen and they were sitting that she broached the subject.

"Um, Jareth, I have a question?"

Jareth eyed her with caution. "It's not about the man again is it?"

She shook her head in response. "No, it's about something else."

He relaxed. "Go ahead, my dear."

She hesitated before speaking, "Well, I hate to ask this but who is Lorena?"

Jareth became as still as stone as he sat paralyzed.

Sarah placed a hand over his. "Jareth, are you okay?"

Several more moments passed until finally he spoke, "Where did you hear that name?"

"After you departed this afternoon, I came back here to find both Hoggle and Mary Elizabeth asleep. So I decided to read a book, but when I went to select one I found a secret passageway behind the bookcase. I did not go far when I became aware that I was in the tunnels that run below the labyrinth and had just turned around to head back when a woman stopped me. She told me to ask you who Lorena was. When I told her that it was your business and you would have told me if you wanted me to know, she told me to ask what her death had to do with me."

Jareth jumped to his feet letting Sarah's hand fall away. "Ladonna, what have you done now? I should have gotten rid of you years ago!"

"That's what she wants," Sarah calmly said as Jareth turned around his expression a little shocked before Sarah continued, "She said that facing your wrath would be more peaceful than living with her sorrow."

"I guess that would be true considering she is more responsibility for what happened."

"Jareth, I know I told you that you were entitled to your secrets and you are, but do remember I am a friend willing to listen. Whatever this is about has upset you and talking about it may help you, but if you don't want to talk about it then I will understand. It obvious this woman just wants to cause to trouble and this probably is actually none of my affair." Sarah had a gentle concerned expression of her face as she spoke to Jareth.

He turned his back to her and leaned against the mantle.

"I did not want you to find out about Lorena, but I guess I should have known that eventually you would find out. It happened a long time ago back when I was still a prince."

Upon hearing this, Sarah knew that the Mystic had to of been lying about the death having anything to do with her.

"Lorena was my best friend since childhood. She had lost her parents at a young age from devastating illness that could not be cured using any medicines or magic. As a result, my parents kept a close watch over her and I saw her often resulting in our friendship that progressed to something more."

He sighed before continuing as Sarah sat quietly wanting to ask questions but at the same time not wanting to interrupt him.

"One day while I was in the garden contemplating asking Lorena to marry me even though I still felt like something was missing, Ladonna showed up asking for my help. She said I was the only one with enough power to help. She said it was to help a relative and being the prince with responsibilities to my people I agreed. It was supposed to be a magical spell to protect the woman from danger but once we began I noticed something was wrong, Ladonna was changing the words that she was supposed to say."

He paused and Sarah could tell he was in pain as she rose out of her seat. She stepped over to where he was standing and placed a hand on his shoulder giving him a supportive squeeze. He reached around with his opposite hand and placed it on hers.

"Thank you," he choked out and then continued, "The spell was actually meant to separate Lorena and my ties to one another, but something went wrong with the spell. To this day I still cannot figure out what happened and I'm sure that Ladonna can't either. Instead of doing what Ladonna intended, it killed Lorena. She came to find me just before she died. We watched her die and could do nothing about it."

He closed his eyes about in tears.

"We caused it. Her friend and her cousin caused her death. It's just not right! The two people she loved the most killed her!"

She gasped, "Her cousin. Her cousin did that to her?"

"Yes."

Sarah could hear the pain and misery in his voice as she saw the troubled look in his eyes.

She could felt his hand on top of her tighten its grip while trembling like he was trying to hold himself together. It broke her heart to see him in such pain as she gently applied more pressure to his shoulder in support.

She took her hand from his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his torso hugging him in a compassionate embrace laying her head on his back.

"Jareth, I'm so sorry. No one should ever have to endure something like that."

He gently turned around while still being encased in her arms. He enclosed her in his arms hugging her tight leaning his head laying it lightly on top of hers.

"Thank you, Sarah. I needed this. I needed to talk to someone about it. It's been so long since I've had anyone to just talk to."

"Anytime. Just like you were there for me, I am here for you. We will be there for each other."

Jareth smiled even though Sarah could not see it. "Yes we will just like we've already been."

Sarah thought about what Jareth said and realized he was right.

They stood holding onto each other for several minutes reveling in the quiet comfort of each other's arms until Jareth finally broke the silence.

"Sarah there is one more thing you should know. My preference would be not to mention it but I have a feeling it is what Ladonna was trying to get at and unless I do something about her, which I know you probably would not like, she will continue if she thinks there is need. Although she didn't have anything to do with the book and figurines, I did discover that day I went to talk to her other things that concern you."

In a gentle whisper of a voice she asked, "What was it Jareth?"

Sighing he told her, "Well the first two I will tell I don't think will not bother you. Actually you will be grateful about one of them. She set things in motion for us to meet. The first time I saw you, I was finding a missing goblin child in the park, but it was Ladonna as I just recently found out that made sure I would find the child there so I would see you."

"I guess that nothing bad, what are the others?"

"Well, she also was the one who placed the idea for the goblins to be in the alleyway where they found Mary Elizabeth that night."

He could feel her breath catch a little in surprise before she spoke, "You're right, I am grateful for that because if she hadn't been brought to you something bad may have happened to her. But let me guess, from what you said she mainly did it to bring us back into each other's lives."

"Yes, my dear," he said, "And that brings me to what I think she wanted you to learn. Upon learning these other things I questioned why she had done it. At that she told me that she was trying to prevent my marriage to Lorena because she saw you in my future."

Sarah gasped, "Jareth," as she pulled away slightly to look up at him.

Before she could say anything, Jareth injected, "Look Sarah, I wouldn't worry about what she said. For all we know, she could have misinterpreted our friendship as something else or she could have been lying. Visions are interpretative. No one can be sure want they really mean. I don't want you to feel pressure that I expect anything from what I just told you. I know you don't feel that way about me."

"That's easier said than done. What if she's right? She seems determined to bring us together. Maybe she is." Sarah looked at him with a questioning look like she was searching for something, an answer of some sort.

She was. She was searching for what she felt for Jareth. She knew she enjoyed his company and his friendship, but had never imagined something more and just could not fathom it. _Jareth and her? Could it be? Was it possible? _she wondered. She was more confused than she had ever been.

"Would it be awful if she was?" He face showed some disappointment in the thought that Sarah dreaded it. "I don't have the answer Sarah. I don't know if she is right. All we can do is let things progress as they may. If we are to remain friends, then we will remain friends. But if something more develops between us, then it does."

"I guess you're right," she sighed, "And Jareth, I would not find being with you awful. I don't want you to think that. In fact what you don't realize is just how much you do mean to me. I may not feel the way you wish I would, but you are more than just a friend to me Jareth."

She leaned her head against his chest. He felt a bittersweet happiness as his heart swelled. He knew he should be wary considering she didn't feel the same, but knowing that she thought more of him than he had imagined made him absolutely giddy.

He rested his head on top of hers.

"That means a lot to me, Sarah."


	31. Chapter 31

The Tragedy

Chapter 31

* * *

Falling back into their routine, Jareth and Sarah passed the next days like they had the previous ones. The only difference was that Jareth would leave occasionally to take care of some business. He once asked Sarah if she wanted to go with him, but she declined not wanting to hold him up to get Hoggle to watch her daughter while they were away. However, she had become privy to some of the on goings of the kingdom when inhabitants showed up at the castle with requests or issues.

It was several days later when Jareth noticed the Sarah seemed a little down.

"You seem a bit depressed today, my dear. Is something troubling you?" Jareth had her arm walking her around the garden.

She looked up at him and shook her head. "Not ready. It's just Hoggle said he would stop by this morning and hasn't. I was looking forward to his visit."

Jareth slowly drew to a halt. "I asked him to do something for me this morning. I didn't realize he was planning on coming by to see you today. It was something that could not wait though, but he will probably be here this afternoon. You'll see him then."

"Oh well that's good." Then with a bit of mischievous in her voice, "But who's going to keep me company until then?"

With a smirk, Jareth remarked, "Well, I guess I'll have to do it. Duty calls. A person in my kingdom needs my help and I must oblige her. I am at your service, my lady." He bowed. "Hopefully, my service will make do."

"Well, I guess if it must it must, but I was so hoping for my friend, Jareth, to keep me company until then." She shook her head in mock disappointment.

"And who exactly am I then," he questioned with a cocked eyebrow.

Giving a look like she was having to think about it, she replied, "Oh, just some king. By the way, what was your name again your majesty?"

They both busted out laughing. Once they finally calmed down, they continued their walk before returning to the sitting room to check on Mary Elizabeth.

Late in the afternoon they heard a knock on the door. Jareth went to go open it.

Standing there was a neatly dressed female goblin. Sarah recognized that this was Tula, one of the more mindful goblins that saw to matters around the castle.

Tula gave a small curtsey bowing her head slightly. "Sorry to disturb you, your majesty, but Hoggle is here and has done as you requested. He awaits for you in the throne room."

"Thank you, Tula. Let Hoggle know that we will be there shortly."

With that Tula departed and Jareth walked over to Mary Elizabeth's playpen leaning down to pick her up.

"Let's go see Hoggle," Jareth smiled. Something about the way Jareth was smiling made Sarah feel like he was up to something.

"Is something going on that I don't know about," she questioned as she joined him at the door.

"You'll see," was all he would say.

As they walked to the throne room, Sarah wondered what was going on.

When they reached the room, Sarah was greeted not only by her friend Hoggle but by her brother, Toby.

Jareth winked at her, "Told you I had something important for Hoggle to do that could not wait."

Toby approached Sarah.

"Hi sis, how have you been?"

She narrowed his eyes at him, "You finally showed up here. You better be glad I have enjoyed myself or I would already be fussing at you by now."

Toby laughed, "I'm sure you would."

She grabbed him into a hug that he returned.

"It's good to see you, but it certainly took you long enough. I mean leaving me here for two weeks."

Toby looked confused, "But it has only been a week."

"No it hasn't," Sarah argued.

Jareth interrupted, "Actually, while it has been two weeks here, it has only been a week in your world."

"Really?" Sarah looked taken back.

Jareth grinned, "Yes, it's part of the magic here."

"Oh, I didn't know that."

Toby looked sheepishly, "If I had known I would have not waited so long."

"Well, it doesn't matter now, besides Jareth has been a good host," she smiled over at Jareth.

Noticing the look, Toby said, "I guess you two have worked everything out."

"Yes, Toby," Sarah told him, "I reckon you what you did worked. Thank you."

Toby pretended like he was stumbling. "I don't believe it. You are thanking me for what I did."

"Ha, ha, very funny." Sarah gave him a face. Then turning to Jareth, "And you can take that look off of yours too." Jareth was trying to force himself not to laugh at the two siblings.

"What look? I'm just standing here minding my own business while waiting for the two of you to finish. But I do have to say, I am enjoying listening." Jareth gave her impish smile.

Hoggle who had been standing idly by injected his thoughts on the situation, "Even Hoggle finds you two funny."

Sarah glared at him then shook her head rolling her eyes. "I give up. By the way Toby, how did you get here so fast?"

"Well, I took the shortcut that led straight to the castle." Toby gave her a proud look.

"Ah-um," Hoggle coughed.

"Well, Hoggle showed me the shortcut," Toby corrected.

Sarah playfully glared at Hoggle, "Well, just be glad it was an actually shortcut."

"Hey, I was just following orders last time," Hoggle defended himself.

Sarah smiled, "Oh I remember! At least the worm got me started. If it hadn't been for him I would have been going the wrong way from the beginning."

Toby gave her a look. "You mean that worm that kept trying to tell Hoggle and me we were going the wrong way?"

Hoggle added, "That worm always send people down the wrong path. And he wasn't even under orders. The other way is the shortcut. No wonder you ended up where you did."

"He's right, Sarah," Jareth said, "The worm always tries to send people away from the castle. He thinks he is helping them. That's actually why I leave him there."

Sarah rolled her eyes and laughed. "Well, maybe I shouldn't have listened to him."

"I guess not," Toby said and took out a piece of paper, "Now I guess I need to say this. Give me the child. Through dangers untold…"

"Stop," Jareth ordered.

"What," both the siblings questioned at the same time.

"Please don't say that," Jareth stated.

Sarah walked up to him. "What is going on Jareth? Why are you suddenly trying to stop Toby? What are you up to?"

Jareth looked innocently at her. "Nothing, I promise. It's just Toby has already completed the labyrinth so he has already reclaimed Mary Elizabeth and has no need of going through that long-winded demand."

With that explanation a look came across Sarah face that even made Jareth nervous. "WHAT? But when I completed the labyrinth to get Toby back, I had to. Or did I really? When we discussed the passage in the book and how the person knew what would have to be said you never mentioned that I would not have had to say it. In fact, you seem to confirm that I had to."

Putting one hand up while sit holding the baby, he spoke gently to her, "Whoa, Sarah. There is a difference here. Let me explain."

"Okay, explain." Sarah stood solid in front of him unmoving with her hands on her hips.

He gave her a sheepish grin, "Well, the main difference is that I was not going to let you leave. I told you this before so that should not surprise you. I was trying to make you stay so you not only had to solve the labyrinth but you had to defeat me too, whereas Toby just had to complete the labyrinth."

Sarah appeared to calm down a bit, "I understand, but you could have picked a better time to tell me this."

"I forget that you don't know all the rules of my world Sarah," Jareth explained.

"I think we both do. I am still not completely happy about just learning this, but I see your point," Sarah conceded.

"As long as we're good that I am not trying anything," Jareth said, "For the three of you are free to go."

Sarah nodded, "We're good."

Toby smiled, "Good, if you're ready to leave, then let's go get Mary Elizabeth's stuff and we can go."

Sarah turned to her brother. "I'm not going back."

"What?" Toby could not believe his ears.

"What?" Jareth's voice resonated right after Toby's. He was floored by what he had just heard.

"You heard me. I want to stay here in the Underground," Sarah told them.

"But why," Toby asked her, "You need to go home."

Sarah smiled slightly to herself before explaining, "But Toby, this is my home now. All of my friends are here. It just feels right here. Besides for you, there is nothing left for me in the world where we come from. And you know how to find me."

"But what about Mary Elizabeth," Toby questioned, "You are going to raise her here instead of in the world where she belongs."

"There is nothing to say she belongs in the other world, but I will teach her about it. Besides, she can still go and visit her Uncle Toby. And if she one day decides she would rather live in that world, then I will gladly let her." Sarah walked over to her brother and placed a hand on his arm. "I will miss you, Toby, but Mary Elizabeth and I are staying."

Toby looked at her and asked one final time, "So are you certain then?"

Sarah nodded, "Yes. That is, if it is alright with Jareth." She turned and looked expectantly at Jareth.

Jareth thought he was dreaming the whole conversion. "Of course, Sarah. It would be a pleasure to have you here. My castle, my land, my world is always open to you." He was so stunned that he couldn't think of anything else to say to her. He wanted to express just how happy he was that she was planning on staying, but couldn't get the correct words out.

"Sarah's staying," Hoggle piped in.

"Yes," Sarah said, "I am staying."


	32. Chapter 32

The Tragedy

Chapter 32

* * *

After the announcement of Sarah's news, Hoggle had dropped his normal gruff attitude and had bounded out to tell others of the news.

"Well since that is settled, you would like to remain for a few days visit here before you return to your world," Jareth inquired of Toby.

Toby shook his head. "No, I can't."

"Are you sure," Jareth pursued, "There is plenty of room. It is no problem and I am certain your sister would love it."

"I would like to," Toby told him, "But I missed several classes when Sarah was in the hospital and although my professors understood, I really can't afford to miss anymore."

"What a shame," Jareth gave a dissatisfied look, "Well maybe some other time."

"We'll see." Toby turned to his sister, "What about your stuff and the house?"

Sarah looked at Jareth, "Do you mind taking me to go get my stuff in the next day or two?"

"Anytime you want Sarah."

With that she turned back to Toby. "The house is yours if you want it. I know the house has always been special to me and I wanted to keep it, but you are your own person with your own life to live."

"Sarah, I can't let the house go. Dad brought it. We were both raised in it. You struggled to keep it after Mom and Dad died so we could live there. I will sublet my apartment until my contract is done. I will manage to keep it." Toby had a determined look on his face because he loved that house almost as much as his sister did and was decided on keeping it even though he did know how he was going to manage to pay the bills.

Sarah smiled, "I'm glad. Um, I know you can't afford it on your own right now Toby, but since I am not going to need any money, well at least not that kind…"

Jareth interrupted her, "You are not going to need any money period. You will have everything provided for you here."

She cut Jareth a glare. "If I am going to stay, I plan on finding some way to earn my keep. I will not sponge off of you just because you are the king and my friend."

Jareth brought a finger his lips then drew it away like he had an idea. "I've got it then. You will be the personal conversationalist to the king, a task that can benefit us both."

"Jareth," Sarah said while rolling her eyes, "We will discuss this later, but I don't think so. I enjoy talking to you too but I WILL do something I consider actual work."

Before Jareth could pursue the conversation, Sarah quickly turned to Toby and continued, "Now as I was trying to tell you. Since I won't need the money that is in my bank account or the money coming in from David's insurance policy, I will have papers filed assigning you as caretaker of my estate so they will allow you to use the money to pay the bills on the house until you are able to take over the payments on your own."

Toby watched her for a second before replying, "That would work out great. Sarah, you didn't just come up with this did you? You have been thinking this over for a while now, haven't you?"

Nodding her head, she had a bit of a shameful look. "Actually I have for a few days now. Since I first came back here, I have felt more myself than I had in years and I already knew I didn't want to leave."

"You've been planning this? Why didn't you let me know," Jareth questioned her mystified that for the past few that with everything that had happened since Sarah had been here that she had kept that from him.

"Because I was not sure I was staying until today when Toby showed up," Sarah explained, "When I saw him I knew I couldn't go back. I knew I had to stay."

"I see," Toby said. Then reaching to hug his sister added, "I love you and if you ever decide to come back home, the house is always yours. Take care."

"I love you too." She smiled. "Squirt."

He grinned back at the use of her pet name for him.

He then walked over to where Jareth was standing still holding Mary Elizabeth. "May I," he asked and took his niece from Jareth. "I will miss you too little one." He then kissed her brow and handed her back to Jareth. "And you, I expect you to look after them. I will be visiting." Toby gave him a serious look.

"You know how much I think of them both," Jareth exchanged a look of understanding with Toby to emphasize what both men already knew. "Are you ready for me to send you back now?"

Toby nodded. "Yes." He turned back around to Sarah. "See ya later, sis." He wondered as Jareth sent him home if Sarah's decision had more to do with Jareth than with any of her other friends in the Underground for he had noticed the way Sarah now looked at Jareth. It wasn't like before. Either way though he was pleased to see his sister seemingly content with her life again.

Jareth walked over to Sarah and beamed. "Now, I would like to truly express my pleasure that you have decided to stay. I believe I failed to before because you did take me by surprise with your announcement."

She laughed slightly. "Well the look on your face was priceless. I had been thinking about mentioning my possibility of staying even though I was not certain, but now I'm glad I didn't. I wouldn't have wanted to miss that expression of absolute disbelief you had."

Jareth scowled at her then chuckled. "Sarah you do tend to take me by surprise with things."

"Well, I don't mean too," Sarah informed him, "But onto a different subject. Your made-up conversationalist job is out of the question, so we need to find something we can both agree on for I know that you are going to try to give me something too easy to do and I will not to accept it. My former job I had before having Mary Elizabeth probably has no comparison here and I know you won't let me clean or cook. Oh but be forewarned, I do still love to cook so I will utilize the kitchen when I get the urge to make something."

"You're right," Jareth confirmed, "I will try to give you the easiest job I can think of because I do not see the need of you working, but if you want to help out at anything then feel free to do so. As far as the cookery, um the kitchen I mean, just give me a chance to talk to Reena for she hates anybody to be in her cookery. The only reason she doesn't try to run me out is because of who I am. Maybe one day we can whip something up together." He winked at her. "You didn't imagine I could cook did you?"

That did surprise Sarah.

Later that night in the sitting room after they had dined, Sarah and Jareth were finally able to come to an agreement on a job that was agreeable to both parties. Sarah had remembered what Jareth had told her about the behavior of the goblins and not trusting them around the baby too much because their attics were often unintentionally harmful. Therefore, she had persuaded Jareth to allow her to try to teach them better conduct.

He agreed even though he doubted even she could make it possible. Sarah had used conscientious Tula as an example that the goblins could be taught to act with responsibility and questioned why Tula was so much more sensible than the rest. Jareth honestly didn't know and couldn't explain it.

Sarah was aware that it was be difficult if not impossible to do, but she already had in mind what her first two lessons would be. She would learn them to stop hitting each other and to pick up after themselves. It made her cringe to see the mess they would leave in areas of the castle that had to be cleaned up later.

During the week that followed, Sarah set about her task while having Mary Elizabeth in a playpen close by where she could keep an eye on her. At the same time, Jareth went about his kingly duties that he often interrupted with unsolicited visits with Sarah until she would run him off to continue working with a group of goblins. As the week progressed, Sarah and Jareth both saw a little progress in her work, which pleased them both. It also pleased Tula who when she was not seeing to things around the castle would often help Sarah.

At the end of the week, Jareth interrupted one of her lessons dismissing the goblins making Sarah upset at his intrusion.

"What was that about," she demanded.

Jareth answered, "Because you need the time to get ready."

"Get ready for what," she asked suspiciously. Sarah knew Jareth had to be up to something again and wondered what it was.

He grinned. "For the ball of course!"

"What?," she exclaimed causing an echo in the room.

He smile became even wider. "You heard me."

"I did but Jareth…"

He wagged his finger at her, "Uh, uh, um, no arguments now. You plan on living here and we do occasionally have balls and dances. Besides we are having this ball is in your honor."

Sarah mouthed dropped open, "Jareth, you didn't."

"Yes I did. And I know you will complain that it is unnecessary, but since Hoggle told everyone a week ago that you were staying with us everyone that does not know you has been asking to meet you. And this ball is the perfect way to acquaint you with others." He stood there waiting for what she would say.

"Okay then, tell me, what exactly am I suppose to wear," she asked reminding him, "I don't have anything suitable for a ball."

He smirked. "I asked Tula to place your dress in your room earlier today. And before you ask, I have already asked Hoggle to watch Mary Elizabeth tonight. I will take her over to his place while you are getting ready. Now, any other questions?"

"No," Sarah scowled at him.

"Good, now go get ready. I will meet you outside your door, my lady," he said while motioning towards the door.

Sarah stomped off knowing there was no sense in arguing with him. She would have to just go the ball. It wasn't really the ball that bothered her, but the fact that Jareth had purposely surprised her with out of the blue with it. Also, she had to admit to herself that she was a little worried about having to meet everyone.

Upon opening the door, she saw a beautiful turquoise gown lying across the foot of the bed. She gasped as she picked it up seeing the mix of light and dark turquoise shades wrapping around the dress. It was a full-length dress with two stylish pieces of fabric that came over the shoulders and wrapped down on either side crossing over each other clinching at the waist. The top had an elegant lace inlay that was of the dark turquoise shade. It was even more beautiful than the dress she had found herself in the last time she was here, which she was half expecting to find.

She quickly went to the washroom and washed up ready to be wearing the dress. When she put the dress on she found it flowed nicely wrapping around her waist snuggly but not too tight.

As she was admiring the fit of her dress in the full-length mirror, she heard a knock at the door. She knew that couldn't be Jareth already. She opened it to find Tula standing at the door holding a box.

Tula curtsey, "The majesty wanted me to bring you this and to help you get ready."

"Thank you, but that's not necessary," Sarah told her earnestly.

"Oh, but I want to. You have done so much to help by learning the other goblins how to act better," Tula informed her than winked at her, "And because of that, I might eventually be able to find a suitable mate."

Sarah had to laugh as she signaled her to come in.

"Besides," Tula continued, "The king has never been pleasant for a long time. His agreeability is due to you and has benefited the whole kingdom." Sarah gave her a tight forced smile wanting to deny it wishing everyone who stop telling her that. First Hoggle and now Tula, she couldn't seem to escape being reminded of it.

As Tula did Sarah's hair turning Sarah away from the mirror so she could not see what Tula was doing, Sarah asked Tula a question.

"Tula, I don't mean to pry but why are you so much different than the other goblins. I mean why do you act with so much more sensible behavior?"

Tula shrugged her shoulders. "I guess it was the way I was raised. You see most of the others lived in Malum before the war," she paused, "Oh, I'm sorry, do you even know about Malum?"

"A little, when Jareth told me about his parents, he told me how his father had died in the war and how the war was to stop the evil ways of the king of Malum," Sarah explained.

Tula sighed, "Yes, it was a bad time for those that lived there. When they were freed from his oppressive rule and moved here, it seems they all lost their senses do their newly found freedom. I don't know why but I guess it was due to no longer fearing the unspeakable crimes that were done to them. Now, don't get me wrong for not all reacted that way and it wasn't only the goblins that reacted that way. It just seems like it was more of our kind than most because a good majority of the goblins that lived here before the war were lost in battle."

"Why wasn't their behavior stopped? And if most of the goblins lived in Malum before the war why is this now known as the Goblin City," Sarah asked.

Tula shook her head, "Probably because the king had just lost his parents and stayed in the depressed mood he has been known for until you came. As far as the name, well that is a result of all the goblins that moved here after the war. Others that were here quickly moved to other parts of the kingdom to avoid them but that may change one day due to you."

"That would be good," Sarah said wondering if it would happen then added, "By the way what was the name of the city before that?"

Tula thought for a minute before replying, "Centra, simply because it was the center of the labyrinth and of the Labyrinth Kingdom as it was known as before the war. After the war, when there was only one kingdom left, the name was somehow dropped and because of the goblins, those that resented their behavior started calling the king, The Goblin King, which stuck."

Tula shook her head, "Well that was a different time and now it is time for you to see how pretty you look." With that Sarah turned around to see that Tula had completely curled her hair in soft waves pulling and stacking some of her hair up in the back leaving the rest to flow free in the back with a few loose tendrils towards the front.

"Oh my, you did a beautiful job on my hair Tula. Thank you so much." Sarah was truly amazed at the work Tula had done.

"You're welcome, now for the jewelry," Tula said as she picked up the box she had brought with her and opened it to display an exquisite silver necklace and earrings. "The king thought silver would go better with the turquoise."

"They're stunning but where did they come from?" Sarah was entranced by the gleaming, sparkling jewelry that looked like it must have taken someone hours upon hours of precious time to make.

"They belonged to the Queen before she died," Tula answered.

"I can't wear them," Sarah said as she gently pushed the box away from her, "They are too much and it's just not right." She honestly did not feel right about wearing Jareth's late mother's jewelry.

"But the king wanted you to," Tula said pushing the box back towards Sarah, "And he will be disappointed if you don't."

Sarah felt a wave of guilt wash over her realizing that although she thought it was too much that Jareth was probably be saddened by her refusal to wear the jewelry. As a result, she reluctantly accepted the jewelry putting it on. She had to admit looking at herself in the mirror that the silver jewelry looked amazing with the dress. She then slipped on the silver colored shoes that had been left near the bed with the dress earlier just in time to hear a knock on the door and Jareth calling out lightly asking if she was ready.

She walked to the door opening it revealing Jareth with his normal wild hair that Sarah find peculiarly attractive wearing a very dark turquoise colored top with silver buttons and a cape attached to the shoulders over top of white legging pants that ran into his long silverish boots. Sarah grinned realizing for the first time why all the female nurses at the hospital and David's sister seemed so flustered around him. She had forgotten in her grief over David and her newly found friendship with Jareth just how attractive she had thought Jareth was all those years ago during her first encounter with him. Although she had feared him, she had also been spellbound by him and was finding herself so again.

* * *

I know this chapter is a little long and some may feel it sidetracked a little but I did not want to leave loose ends with the house considering how important it was suppose to be to her earlier in the story. Also, I felt like Sarah would not want to feel totally dependent on Jareth so I formed a task for her and showed where she is settling in making another friend in the Underground.


	33. Chapter 33

The Tragedy

Chapter 33

* * *

Jareth felt like the wind had been knocked out of him as he stared back at Sarah transfixed by the sight of her.

"Breathtaking," he murmured taking her hand and kissing it while never taking her eyes off of her.

Sarah's cheeks redden at his words finding herself flustered by his compliment. "Um, thank you Jareth. Tula did my hair. You look dashing tonight yourself," she managed to say feeling like a blundering fool.

"Thank you, my dear." He took her arm and started to escort her out but stop looking around behind her to speak to Tula. "And thank you for helping her Tula. Her hair looks beautiful. I hope you plan on joining us at the ball tonight. You deserve a night off."

Tula bowed, "You are very kind, your majesty. Thank you. If it pleases you, then I will be there."

Jareth gave her a disconcerting look, "It is not a command Tula, simply a desire for you to have an enjoyable evening, which may or may not be at the ball. I would rather you do what pleases you."

"I understand sir." Tula gave a slight nod of her head.

"I hope so," Jareth said then smiled, "Have a good evening Tula."

Before Tula had a chance to answer, Jareth swept Sarah out the door closing it behind them.

"Tula is very loyal to you," Sarah observed as Jareth walked her down the hallway.

Jareth nodded, "She is. I have always thought a lot of her even though I have unfortunately never let her known it. She has saw to the running of the castle's staff for a long time now and has always done an excellent job. I just wish she learn that not everything is a command."

Sarah glanced at Jareth with a wry smile, "Well considering the way you apparently treated everyone in the past can you actually blame her."

"I guess not," Jareth shook his head then added, "Maybe I can do something to make it up to her and show her just how much I appreciate everything she does. Any ideas?"

"Well I know she hopes that with the work we are doing with the goblins that she may finally find a suitable partner to wed so maybe a grand wedding when she does. As far as for now, maybe just actually telling her at times that you are appreciative of what she has done like you did with my hair would be a good start."

Jareth agreed, "Yes, it is something I need to do a lot more and not only for Tula but for others around here as well. And as far as the wedding, I will definitely give her a wedding she will be telling her grandkids about. Also I think maybe some small trinket would be nice as well. I don't mean anything fancy that she probably wouldn't accept but just something small like a little brooch maybe."

Sarah nodded in agreement, "I think that would be nice."

"And speaking of trinkets, the necklace and earrings look stunning on you my dear. The sliver goes well with the dress." Jareth gingerly fingered the earring nearest him before slowly letting it drop back into place.

"They are lovely Jareth and so is the dress. Thank you for both, but I plan on returning the jewelry to you after the ball tonight," she informed him.

Jareth drew them to a halt not far from the entrance to the ballroom turning around to face her. "Why? I gave them to you to wear. You should keep them."

Sarah tilted her head slightly, "Jareth you just said that you know Tula wouldn't accept anything too fancy so why should I be any different? Besides, I know that these belonged to your mother and I don't feel right taking them."

"Sarah," Jareth grimaced, "My mother has been gone for a long time now and all that jewelry has been in storage until now. It should be worn by someone and I know my mother wouldn't mind it being you. So please let's make an agreement."

Curious but hesitant as to what Jareth was about to suggest Sarah asked, "What agreement exactly?"

"You can return it after the ball so it can be put safely away, but it will be yours to wear anytime you want along with any of the other pieces of jewelry that are being stored. Are you willing to agree to that?"

"I guess that would be okay," Sarah acquiesced.

"Good," Jareth smiled, "That was easier than I thought it would be. Now, how are you feeling? Ready to enter?"

Sarah breathed deeply, "Not really. I am just so nervous about meeting everyone tonight."

Jareth gave her a warm, comforting grin, "They are going to love you Sarah. And remember, they are probably going to be nervous themselves trying to impress you."

Sarah express amusement and added, "Or trying to impress you by how well they treat me."

"Yeah, that's probably true too, but to do so they first have to impress you," Jareth agreed with a wink offering her his arm again, "Shall we?"

With her arm in his, Jareth escorted her into the ballroom.

Upon entering she felt her breathing come to a standstill as she saw the masses at the bottom of the staircase fall silent and turn around to stare up at her and Jareth. The crowd was a collection of people, dwarves, and other creatures of the Underground. As quickly as they fell silent, several hushed whispers began among the crowd which made Sarah uncomfortable because they knew the conversations were about her.

Noticing her uneasiness, Jareth leaned over slightly and whispered in a comforting voice, "Relax." As he straightened, he raised his hand to silence the whispers causing the room to hurriedly drop into stillness again.

Jareth began to address the crowd as Sarah waited wanting to be away from the watchful eyes of the crowd.

"As most of you already know, we have a new inhabitant to our land. Many of you have requested to meet her. To appease the requests and to celebrate her decision to live among us, tonight we hold a ball in her honor."

Jareth lifted Sarah's hand with his and stepping away slightly motioning towards her with his other hand.

"I present to you Sarah."

The crowd exploded into a thunderous applause. Stepping back into place beside Sarah, Jareth threw up his hand to regain the crowd's attention.

"To commence the dancing, I will ask our guest of honor, Sarah, to join me for the opening dance."

"Jareth," Sarah muttered where no one could hear.

Jareth smiled and told her in a low voice, "Don't worry. I know from the last time you were here that you are beautiful dancer." He gave her a wink.

He then added, "Just nodded your head so everyone knows you have agreed."

Sarah bowed her head in his direction in agreement. They descended the staircase walking down among the crowd who parted allowing the two to pass uninterrupted until they reached the center of the room.

When Jareth came to a halt, he turned around to stand in front of Sarah giving a gentlemanly bow which Sarah returned with a curtsey bowing her head before they began dancing. As they danced, Sarah breathed a sigh of relief.

"That was torture, standing up there with everyone watching with their curious eyes."

Jareth gave her a regretful look. "I apologize for the necessary of needing to address the crowd and present you to them. However, I do admit that I am a little surprise about how being in front of a crowd upsets you considering you use to play act. Although, I never saw you act in an actual play in front of people, I thought you would have wanted to go into acting, which would put you in front of crowds."

Sarah bit her bottom lip. "Well, acting is slightly different. You are playing a role in front of everyone. You are not playing yourself."

"Well then, next time just pretend like you are playing a role," Jareth gave her a teasing smile that Sarah glowered at.

"Next time?"

Instead of answering her, Jareth just spun her around continuing to dance as other couples joined them on the dance floor.

When the music stopped, Sarah wished they could just keep dancing as the next song began but Jareth instead steered her over to where a group was standing.

As he walked her along, Sarah muttered, "Jareth couldn't we just continue dancing?"

"Sorry, my dear, but you need to start being introduced to the others. Besides, how you it look if I held your attention the entire night? And you may as well going ahead and prepare yourself for having to dance with others too."

Sarah gave him a slanted eye look, "I believe you are having too much fun torturing me."

That made Jareth laugh as they approached the group.

Jareth reintroduced her to the group and introduce everyone to group to Sarah. As everyone exchanged pleasantries with her as Jareth introduced them, Sarah knew she would never remember everyone's name.

She also found Jareth was right about the dancing as a handsome man around her age was the first to ask Sarah to dance, but Sarah found she had the last laugh as she saw a jealous glint come into Jareth's eyes as the man strolled her onto the dance floor twirling her around. Although Jareth continued to converse with the group his eyes never strayed from the couple as they danced.

When the song ended, Sarah found herself being asked by another to dance. This time it was a man who seemed a good deal older than her. As they danced she noticed that Jareth no longer seem to watch her as eagerly as before and she assumed it was because of her partner and found the same to be true when as soon as the next dance began a dwarf asked her to dance. She found the dwarf to be a delight to talk to, but found the dancing to be extremely awkward due to the height difference.

As the night wore on Sarah found herself dancing with all sorts of creatures including but not limited to fauns, centaurs, gnomes, a few mannerly goblins, and even a couple of giants. Just like with the dwarf, although Sarah enjoyed their conversations, she often found the dancing with them sometimes difficult. However to her relief her most common partners were seemingly human male, but Sarah was aware that several of them if not all were probably more than they seemed but at least the dancing was easier with them.

Only a couple of times did Sarah manage to get a break from dancing by asking her current partner if they could stop to get some refreshment. The only problem was then Sarah was often flocked by the females of the dance trying to get a chance to talk to her while she was not preoccupied by the males. Although Sarah found it daunting, she really could not blame them for everyone seemingly wanted her attention and was having to fight for it among the others.

It was later in the night when she had managed to get another short break that Sarah gladly found her attention approached by a familiar face.

"Ah, fair maiden, I hope thou hath found the evening enjoyable."

Sarah looked up to see Sir Didymus and smiled.

"I have and I found it has just because a little more so with your presence."

"My lady, thou dost falter me. Would thou honor me with this next dance?"

"It would be my pleasure."

Sarah found herself more holding Sir Didymus as she danced but didn't care pleased to be around someone familiar having lost sight of Jareth for most of the ball just catching glimpses of him every now and then through the crowd and she was being spun around wishing he would approach her for another dance.

"I'm surprise you do not have Ambrosius with you."

"Bring a steed to a ball, unspeakable, my lady."

"Oh, I wasn't thinking." Sarah laughed inwardly at the craziness that both Sir Didymus and Ambrosius were both canines, the only difference being Sir Didymus could talk and walk on his hind legs where Ambrosius could not.

"Not to worry, my lady," Sir Didymus assured her as they continued to dance.

Later as the ball approached the end, Sarah found herself dancing again with the young man she had danced her first dance with other than Jareth. It was then that Sarah noticed Jareth's ever watchful eyes on her again his presence more pronounced than it had been for the rest of the evening since that other dance. Although Sarah slightly worried that there might be some other reason Jareth seemed uncomfortable with her dancing with this man, Sarah was finding herself highly amused at the situation.

As the song transitioned into the last song with an announcement being made that it was the last dance of the evening, the man Sarah was dancing with did not surrender his partner asking her to continue and Sarah finding herself having to politely agree since no others had approached to make a request.

Jareth had been keeping an eye on Sarah the entire evening through the crowded room observing how remarkably she was conforming to the demands of the evening of her constant attention. He enjoyed watching how gracefully she danced around the room and how charming she was with ladies.

Although several times he had wanted to interrupt the dances to steal Sarah away from the others for his own self, he had performed the play of a good host allowing the others to hold her attention. That was until now. It was the final dance and he was not going to let anyone else take that dance away from him. Besides, he didn't like the way the man Sarah was dancing with stared at her and he knew why he didn't like it. He had seen from the first moment that the man had saw Sarah earlier when he introduce them and the man had asked Sarah to dance just how much the man liked Sarah and that bothered Jareth tremendously.

Making his way the crowd, Jareth interrupted the couple's dance just shortly after the music for the final dance had begun.

"Pardon me, as the king I should close the ball with our guest of honor."

Not waiting for the gentleman's answer, Jareth held out his hand to Sarah which she gladly accepted.

The gentleman bowed saying something but Jareth began whirling her about too quickly too for her to fully hear what the gentleman had said.

Jareth gave Sarah a smile, "Well, the evening is almost over and you survived. How are you feeling?"

"Tired," Sarah laughed, "I don't think I've had hardly a moments break tonight. The only sort of break I have had was with Sir Didymus. I kept hoping you might interrupt some of the dances like you just did to give me a break."

Jareth chuckled, "Sorry, but I had to be a good host and not dominate your attention my dear. So have you met anyone you find interesting tonight?"

Sarah nodded, "Several but I doubt I will remember all their names."

"What about Stephen that you were just dancing with. I think he is the only one I've seen you dance with more than once this evening," Jareth nodded his head in the man direction off the side noticing how the man was watching them.

"Well, you mean besides you," Sarah reminded him.

Jareth gave her look that expressed agreement to her statement.

"He's nice enough is all I can say," Sarah began, "But I do believe there is a slight problem."

"What is it," Jareth asked slightly concerned.

"You."

"Me?" Jareth gave her a confounded look.

"Yes, I do believe you are jealous," Sarah teased goodheartedly.

Jareth shrugged his shoulders slightly, "I will not deny it. You already know how I feel about you."

"Well, you do not have to worry," Sarah informed him, "Like I told you, he is nice enough but that is it."

Jareth grinned a little smugly as they continued to dance with a look a sheer pleasure in his eyes as he looked into her beautiful eyes caught up in them.

As he whirled her around, Sarah found herself wishing the dance would never end as she stared back into Jareth's eyes caught up in her own little world where only the two of them existed barely hearing the music.

When the music came to the end and everyone started clapping to the member of the ensemble that had been playing the music, Jareth reluctantly strolled Sarah to the stairs not wanting the evening to end and started to ascend them.

Upon their ascent, Jareth forewarned her, "I need to make a closing speech and it would be good if you made a little one yourself about meeting everyone and enjoying the evening."

Sarah let out a breath, "Jareth."

"I'll be by your side the entire time, but you don't have to. I can say it in my speech, dear," he assured her.

Sarah shook her head, "No that's okay. I can handle it. I just wish you would let me know these things earlier."

"So you can fret the entire time," he said rhetorically and smirked, "I think not."

Sarah gave him a funny look, "I still say you're having too much fun torturing me."

At the top of the stairs, they turned around to face the crowd below and Jareth raised his hand for silence.

"It has been a wonderful night and a wonderful ball. I thank you all for joining us. Before the ball comes to a conclusion, our honored guest would like to address you all with a short speech."

Jareth nodded in Sarah's direction falling back a step, which Sarah wished he hadn't done.

Taking a breath before beginning Sarah sought out familiar faces pleased to find Tula among the crowd seeing her for the first time since before the ball. Keeping her eyes on Tula which allowed her to calm her nerves a little, Sarah smiled and addressed the crowd, "I desire to express my pleasure at meeting everyone this evening. I have had a lovely time and have met so many wonderful individuals. I truly look forward to living among you all. Thank you for accepting me into your world."

The crowd erupted into applause as Jareth step back into place beside Sarah. He waited allowing the crowd to continue to applaud for a short while before still the crowd with his hand.

"We both thank you very much for your kindness. I am pleased to see how well you have accepted our new friend. Thank you. Have a good evening."

With that Jareth ushered Sarah from the room and down the hallway. Only having they had walked a little ways, Sarah could heard others emerging from the room leaving.

"That wasn't so bad was it," Jareth teased.

Sarah shot him a playful glare. "Maybe for you. I'm exhausted. I have a feeling I will fall to sleep as soon as my head hits the pillow tonight."

"It's a good thing I suppose that I asked Hoggle to keep Mary Elizabeth until the morning then."

Giving Jareth a thoughtful look, Sarah replied, "Yes, but I feel a little guilty that Hoggle had to miss out of the ball because of it."

Jareth laughed, "Hoggle was probably glad to have an excuse. He has always hated these things. He barely ever attended events even back when my parents were alive."

Sarah joined his laughter, "Knowing Hoggle you are probably right. Speaking of Mary Elizabeth though, I guess I should warn you to expect I lot of the female guests to drop by to see her in the next few days. When I actually got a break from dancing that was one of the main things they asked me about."

"I'm not that surprised. It will give you a good chance to really talk to them for you didn't get much time to do so tonight. The males kept you to themselves dancing for most of the night," Jareth said as he drew to a halt in front of her door.

"That's for certain," Sarah agreed, "But my favorite was my partner for the last dance." She smiled at him indicating her favor for dancing with him above the others.

"Let's have one last dance tonight then," he suggested.

"But there's no music."

"Does it matter?" Jareth gave her a questioning look with a smile indicating that the lack of music should not be an issue.

"I guess not," Sarah smiled as Jareth took her in his embrace whirling her around the empty hallway.

They were laughing softly as Jareth whispered, "Sarah," tilting his head towards her inching closer to her lips.


	34. Chapter 34

The Tragedy

Chapter 34

I am going to go ahead and say some of you are probably go to hate me for this chapter but it was needed.

* * *

Sarah felt the warmth of his lips as they pressed against hers. The pressure was light at first then became a bit more intense and insistent as Sarah parted her lips returning his kiss. His arm that had been around her waist from dancing drew her body closer pressing it against his and his hand that had been holding hers realized its grip finding its way to the back of her head into her curls. Sarah's hand that was on Jareth's shoulder gripped a bit tighter as her other hand that was now free pressed against Jareth's chest feeling the heat radiating from it.

Her heart was racing and her head was spinning as Jareth broke the kiss pulling away from her as she drifted towards him trying to hold onto the kiss, onto Jareth. The dizziness made her feel faint. She had never thought it possible. She had read novels that had talked about a woman feeling this way but she had never thought it could actually happen. She swayed a bit. She felt Jareth's arm grasp on her waist apply a firmer hold.

He grabbed her hand as his concern took control. "Sarah, are you okay?"

"Jareth," she breathed in a ragged breath for it was all she could say as her heart continued to pound.

She steadied herself as Jareth squeezed her hand in concern keeping a look of apprehension on his face that bored down into her keeping her speechless.

The pressure on her hand was the only thing that drew her attention away. As Jareth held tight to it, she felt it there, still there, actually. She had almost forgotten she was still wearing it. She glanced down at her left hand in Jareth's to see the shiny little ring. It was her wedding band.

As she stared at it, she thought about David and then she thought about Jareth.

Jareth followed her gaze.

When he saw what she was staring at he started shaking his head a dread forming in his heart. He suddenly broke all contact with her back away across the hallway.

"I'm sorry Sarah. I wasn't thinking. I shouldn't have. Please forgive me."

He brought a curved hand up to his mouth then threw it down in a fist back against the wall.

"How could I be so stupid," he muttered angry to himself before disappearing.

Sarah had been in a half-haze. She had been hearing and seeing Jareth, but had not been able to speak. She had wanted to tell him that she had wanted him to kiss her. No, not wanted, but desired it.

But when she saw Jareth disappear she felt something scream inside her to get him back before it was too late.

"Jareth," she screamed to the empty hallway, "Come back!"

"Jareth," she called out again, "Please come back. We need to talk."

When he did not she added to the message hoping he would listen, "Jareth, I wanted you to kiss me. Please come back."

Feeling miserable at the situation she called out on more time something that she thought might not fail, "Jareth, the Goblin King, I summon you," then added in a small trembling voice, "Please, Jareth."

She was afraid of what Jareth might do. She knew Jareth reacted too strongly to situations especially when the situation seemed to involve her and often did foolish things as a result. She was afraid he might do something to endanger himself.

Instead of heading into her room, she half-walked, half-ran down the hallway nearly tripping over the skirt of her dress several times in the short distance before reaching Jareth's room pounding on the door.

"Jareth if you are in there, open the door," she cried out.

When no one answered she wondered if he possibly in there but not answering. She knew he might not actually be in there but she became set that she would not leave until she knew for sure. She pushed the door opened entering Jareth's room for the first time. It was dark but she found a lantern and the magical flint near the door.

She was too distracted to wonder why Jareth even had if for he clearly did not need it with his powers as she picked them up. With the lantern she looked around the room half-distracted in her desperation to find Jareth but was amazed to find how little Jareth's room actually contained.

Although she knew she needed to find Jareth she could not help but to look around first hoping that maybe there was a clue to where he might be. The room had grand furniture with a massive bed in the middle of the room, two comfortable chairs to the side in front of a fireplace, and a couple of dressers but little else.

And on the walls were only three paintings. One was of a lovely couple that Sarah could see Jareth in their faces especially the man's, but the smile was the woman's. Sarah knew these had to be Jareth's parents and smiled at the picture wishing like Jareth had earlier that she could have met them. The other was of a beautiful young woman, which Sarah assumed must have been Lorena. Sarah shook at the thought of what had happened to the woman.

It was the last painting that stunned her. The painting was of her. She was in the white dress from the masquerade Jareth had pulled her into as she dreamed the first time she was in the Underground. She couldn't believe he had that painting and how was a question to her because she was only there for a very short time, certainly not long enough for a painting to be rendered.

Staring at the picture, she felt anguish at the pain Jareth must be feeling and tears started flowing unbidden down her cheeks wishing she could just find him or that he would just answer her pleads for him. Through her tears, she decided that Jareth would eventually have to come back to his room and she could not search the whole kingdom for Jareth. She also realized that if he had wanted to he might have even traveled to the other world to avoid her or as she thought to avoid hurting her. She knew that what Jareth would think. Jareth would think that he had caused her pain and misery, which he had not. Thinking about it made her very even worse.

_Why did I ever look at my ring?_ She wondered as she tormented herself.

Throwing herself on his bed, she just hoped that he would not do something stupid as she began crying even harder. As the tears dried up, worn and miserable she eventfully fell asleep curling up into a little ball.

It was in the wee hours of the early morning when Jareth returned to his room. He had been trying to figure out how to make up for his mistake. He had been berating himself about how hadn't really been that long since Sarah had lost David and how he should have thought about her still grieving, but had been too overcome by his passion for her earlier that night to think about it. He just couldn't get out of his mind how Sarah had look at her ring after the kiss. There wasn't pain in her eyes. Instead, it was something that he couldn't read and that scare him even more.

And he had thought she had been reacting to his kiss when she had grab his shoulder tighter and pressed her hand against his chest, but now he wondered if she was not trying to push him away instead. He believed he was a monster that had taken advantage of her and she had almost passed out in alarm from what he had done. He raised his hand grabbing the sides of his head aggressively shaking his head as he turned towards his bed. He suddenly dropped his hands.

When he saw her curled up on his bed, Jareth hesitated not sure what to do as he felt a confused mixture of odd relief and guilt. She was there in his room which meant she had come looking for him, but why he wondered. Almost seeing how small she seemed wrapped up in her tight ball in the massive bed, reminded him of some helpless child and made him just want to hold her close to him and cry.

He went and sat on the edge of the bed careful not to wake her. He stroked her hair and could see that she had been crying. He felt another surge of pain shoot through his heart as he saw this.

In his sadness, he talked quietly to the unconscious woman.

"What have I done? After everything we have gone through and then I do this. I should have known you weren't ready. You were still wearing your ring. I could feel in on your hand when we were dancing but I just didn't think about it. You were just so beautiful standing there that I couldn't resist. Why do I always end up hurting you? I'm sorry. Maybe it would be better if you went back to your world."

He thought about collecting Mary Elizabeth and taking them both back to the house. He remembered that Toby had said the house would always be hers and thought that it might be for the best. Then he could just disappear from her life forever.

Jareth then shook his head. He knew he could not do that to her. He had to let her decide and if fact she had already decided to stay in the Underground and would be furious if he took her back while she slept. It frightened him that it might hurt her even worse making her think that everything he had done to just try to be a friend had been a lie. But what frightened him the most was that tomorrow she might ask him to take her back after what he had done.

He shook his head and gently picked her up knowing that the following day would be a rough one for both of them.

"I think it would be better if you wake up in your own room, my dear," he told her even though she could not hear him.

Magically he transferred them to Sarah's room laying her down in her bed. He pulled the covers over her wrapping her tight and then magically changed her out of her dress removing the jewelry as well and putting a nightgown in its place. Before leaving he leaned down and kissed her brow while smoothing down a piece of hair.

"I guess I just can't help loving you the way I do, my dear. If only I could resist and if only you felt the same."

He woefully sighed as he looked at her one last before heading back to his room.

Back in his room, he sat down on the edge of his bed and just stared at the painting of his beautiful Sarah.

* * *

Sarah's grieving process needed to be concluded and this chapter along with the next will basically end it.


	35. Chapter 35

The Tragedy

Chapter 35

* * *

In the morning when Sarah awoke she was surprise to find herself in her own bed. She knew Jareth must have found her asleep on his bed at sometime during the night and brought her back to her room. She breathed a sigh of relief that at least Jareth had came back to the castle. She just now wondered if he was going to continue to avoid her.

She pushed her covers off hoping that Jareth would be meeting her at the door like he did most mornings but somewhat doubting it. In a rush, she pulled on an outfit of a long fuchsia top that fell to mid-thigh and black leggings. She walked over to the vanity table and picked up a brush running it through her hair brushing the curls from the night before that were now a mess into soft waves.

When she went to place the brush back on the table, she noticed her wedding ring still on her hand. She stared at it for a minute then made a decision.

"It is time to move on. I will always love you David. I promise you that but I know you wanted me to move on with my life and this is the first step."

Taking her right hand, she gently removed the ring from her ring finger on her left hand and laid it in a drawer of the vanity table.

Once that was done, she walked to the door opening it, praying Jareth would be leaning against the opposite wall waiting for her but found herself disappointed when he wasn't. She decided to try her luck and leaned into the sitting room to check for him. When he was not in there, she opted to check his bedroom, then his study, and finally the throne room. She was almost tempted to check the room with the mirror figuring that Jareth might believe she would never go near there again when a thought occurred to her.

She couldn't believe she hadn't thought of it before. She now remembered that Jareth had said that the garden had always been his sanctuary when he needed to think or calm down. As soon as she thought of it, she quickly headed in its direction.

After walking for a few minutes in the garden, Sarah was relieved to find Jareth sitting in the far corner. His back was turned towards her as he stared off into thought when as she saw him.

"Jareth," Sarah cried out with relief as she ran up behind him and was getting ready to throw her arms around him in a hug. However, before she could Jareth stood up moving.

Um, I'll leave Sarah if you want to continue walking in the garden," Jareth told her looking grief stricken like he hadn't even heard the relief in her voice as he starting might his way pass Sarah.

Sarah blocked his path, putting her hands on both of his arms, shaking her head, trying to force Jareth to stay. "No, that is not what I want Jareth. I came here looking for you. Now, stop trying to run away from me. We need to talk. Or, I actually, I need to talk while you listen to me. I need to tell you something and you need to listen it."

Looking down at her, Jareth sighed, "Sarah, I already know what you need to say. And, all I can do is to apologize for last night. I am sorry. I was not thinking. And you just looked so beautiful. I didn't mean to hurt her again. I know you don't feel that way about me, but I just can't help my feelings. I won't ever do it again. I promise. I'm sorr.."

Becoming irritated at his promises and apologies, Sarah huffed, "I don't want your apologies Jareth. All I want is for you to shut up and listen to me for two second."

The forcefulness of Sarah's voice and attitude astonished Jareth as he stared at her and nodded. "Okay."

Nodding Sarah let her hands fall. "Jareth, you did not hurt me."

"But Sarah," Jareth started.

"No you didn't. I am glad you kissed me. I enjoyed it. In fact you took my breath away."

"I frightened you," Jareth insisted.

"No you didn't," Sarah repeated.

"Then why did you just about pass out," Jareth questioned.

Sarah smiled a goofy smile, "Well, I guess because when I opened my door last night I saw a handsome king that I know standing there looking drop-dead gorgeous that reminded me just how madly attractive I was to him years ago when I first came here. And I was able to dance three wonderful dances with him. And when he finally pressed his lips to mine, it just sent my heart racing and my head spinning."

"Sarah," Jareth shook his head, "that is your grief talking. The kiss probably just massed some of your pain is all making it feel better. You probably would be better off moving back to your own world away from me. Or if you do insist on staying, you would be better off becoming involved with someone like the man from the dance Stephen. However, I do not think you are ready for that yet either. I saw the way you looked at your ring last night. I know from your look that you truly did not want the kiss."

Sarah wanted to scream and exhaled a sigh of frustration at Jareth, which he flinched at.

"I know you can be hard-headed Jareth, but right now you are being a stupid fool. Would you just listen to me? I told you last night that I did not like Stephen in that way. And, I basically just told you that I love you, which I do. My reaction was just a result of that being the first kiss I have had since David died, of feeling something for someone else. If I had not wanted you to kiss me, I would not have kissed you back. And, I am not leaving the Underground. And, if you try to force me to, then I will simply wish Mary Elizabeth to you again so you will have to bring me back to join her because I know you would not keep me from her. And I guarantee you that I will refuse to complete the labyrinth keeping us here with you forever."

She took a breath before continuing.

"And if you think that the way I feel is me trying to rebound from my grief than you are dead wrong. Also, I certainly hope you do not hold yourself to the promise of never kissing me again because if you do then I guess I will just have to force kisses on you."

Sarah grabbed both sides of Jareth's face pulling him towards her kissing him trying to make him understand her desire for him. Uncertainly, Jareth wrapped his arms around Sarah's back. When Sarah dropped her hands wrapping her arms around his neck, Jareth seem to become more certain as he pulled her body closer to his holding her tight returning her kiss.

When they finally broke the kiss, they were both breathless and just stared at each other for several seconds before Jareth asked, "Are you sure?"

Sarah nodded with a smirk. "If I wasn't, I wouldn't be standing here." Then she added with a soft, affectionate smile, "I love you, Jareth."

A look of utter devotion for her came into Jareth's eyes as they shone with the love he felt for her. "You don't know how happy you have just made me Sarah. I have loved you since the first day I saw you."

Sarah blushed, looked down, and then back up. "I can't necessary say the same Jareth, but I know I am glad you came into life and I think even back then through my anger and my fear of you, I still felt something for you. I can't call it love for I know it what not that, not yet at least, but I know something was there."

"I understand, my dear," Jareth told her and then added with a smile, "My love."

Her eyes shone as she told him, "It's the first time you've ever called me that. I like it. It sounds right. It feels right." Then she added as well, "My love."

Still wrapped in Jareth's arms from the previous kiss, he pulled her tight to him leaning down.

"Yes, it does," he breathed in a whisper, Sarah feeling his breath on her face as he came closer to kiss her. The kiss sent her into yet another heart racing, head spinning whirl as she pulled him tighter to her not wanting to let him go.

As their kiss ended, Sarah stated, "You know I think we have a problem."

Jareth frowned slightly, "What?"

"If you keep kissing me like this, you might have to start picking me up off the floor." Sarah let out an exhausted breath as she slumped slightly in Jareth's embrace.

She could feel Jareth's booming laughing as it vibrated through him as he laughed. "So I am that good of a kisser, eh," he asked with a smirk.

"I guess so," she laughed at his silliness.

"Or is it that you are just that you find me so drop-dead gorgeous," he continued.

Sarah gave him a look, "Well it could be, put stop being so boastful, Jareth."

He gave her a side-ways grin, "Well, you are the one who said it, my love."

Sarah just shook her head laughing, "I guess I did."

He released her sliding an arm around her back and they headed to the bench where Jareth had been earlier.

"I guess I should have just come back and listen to you last night when you called me," Jareth said.

Sarah nodded, "Yes you should have, my love. You could have saved us both a lot of misery."

Jareth beamed with joy as he heard her say my love again. "You're right, but at least it's over now."

Taking Sarah's left hand in his as they sit down he rubbed a finger gently across Sarah's ring finger noticing her ring was gone. He looked up at her.

Before he could even ask, Sarah stated, "It was time. I will always love David, but I have to let him go and I have," then added with a loving smile, "Besides, I can't wear David's ring when I am in love with someone else."

Jareth returned her smile, but then asked, "So where do we go from here?"

"We'll act the same as we always have." She then added with a smirk, "Just now you get to kiss me anytime you want. And I expect to be kissed often."

"Is that so?" He cocked his eyebrow at her.

"Yes, that is so," Sarah stated in a matter of fact voice.

"No fear of passing out?" A smug look came upon his face.

Sarah passionately stared him in the eyes. "I'll take my chances."

With a self-satisfied grin, Jareth said, "Well, I guess I should get started then," as he pulled her towards him planting his lips on hers.


	36. Chapter 36

The Tragedy

Chapter 36

* * *

'Hmm…excuse me. Pardon me for the interruption."

Jareth and Sarah were still kissing in the garden as they heard a timid voice break into their bliss. Sarah's blushed as she turned to see Tula standing a few feet away looking very embarrassed herself for interrupting the two's private moment.

"Um, I apologize again for the interruption, but some of the ladies of the kingdom have come to call on Sarah," Tula said as she slightly bowed her head to Jareth.

Jareth smiled a mischievous smile as he told her, "Thank you, Tula, but you can go informed the ladies that Sarah won't be able to take visitors for she is occupied by the king."

"Yes, sir," Tula replied and Sarah thought she could see a hint of a knowing grin from the little goblin.

As Tula turned around to quickly go attend to her task, Sarah protested, "Wait."

She then turned to Jareth, "You wanted me to have a chance to get to know and talk to the ladies when I told you about it last night and it would not look right if on the first day they come to visit, they are turned away."

Trying to convince her otherwise, Jareth argued, "But you also said they wanted to see Mary Elizabeth and she is still with Hoggle."

"And, exactly how long will it really take us to go get her?" Sarah gave him a sarcastic look. "Now stop trying to make excuses for me."

Jareth resignedly gave up. "You can't really blame me for wanting to keep you for myself today, but alright. However, your goblin behavior lessons can be cancelled this afternoon."

Sarah chuckled a little, "I guess I can agree to that." She then turned to Tula, "Tell the ladies that we must attend to something first but it should not take long and I hope they do not mind the wait for I look forward to seeing them."

"Yes, Sarah," Tula replied and rushed off thinking of how unusual that conversation was. To have the king's mind changed was highly unusual. She laughed at the thought of how much Sarah really had changed the king smiling at how happy they had seemed. She was glad to have her king happy for she had stood by him even when others had abandoned him due to his heartlessness, but she had realized throughout the whole time that it was only due to his loneliness. And, now that loneliness was gone and the king was once again whole and the man he use to be. _Well, almost_ she thought to herself for she had never seen him that high of spirits even before losing Lorena and his parents.

Sarah and Jareth arrived at Hoggle's to find him feeding Mary Elizabeth applesauce.

Hoggle let out a breath as he saw them appear in the middle of his eating area, "You likely to scare Hoggle to death like that."

Jareth chuckled slightly.

"Sorry," Sarah told him as she walked over to her daughter kissing her over the forehead, "Hi, sweetheart, were you a good girl for our friend Hoggle?"

"Of course she was," Hoggle answered, "She never gives old Hoggle any trouble!"

Sarah smiled, "I'm glad. Thank you for taking care of her."

"Yes, Hoggle," Jareth said with a warm genuine voice, "Thank you for caring for her last night."

"My lord," Hoggle said with a slight bow of his head then asked Sarah, "Did Sarah enjoy the ball?"

"Besides for a couple of things, yes I did. You should have attended it Hoggle. We could have found someone else to watch Mary Elizabeth. Maybe you could have saved me from the crowds since Jareth didn't." She casted a glance at Jareth in jest of what she had said.

"And the king," Hoggle asked looking up at Jareth for a second before continuing to feed the baby.

"It was nice. The kingdom really took to Sarah. The men kept her dancing most of the night and the only few times she had a break the ladies were swarming about her," he smiled proudly at Sarah, "And Sarah handled it all beautifully."

Sarah added, "Actually, some of the ladies have stopped by the castle to see Mary Elizabeth this morning if you don't mind Hoggle."

"Oh, must Sarah take her already," Hoggle formed a sign of displeasure on his face.

"I'm afraid so Hoggle. I don't want to keep them waiting but so long," Sarah answered him.

"But maybe, Hoggle would like to babysit her later today after the ladies are gone?" Jareth gave Sarah a longing look that said he hoped she would agree to his plan and Sarah returned his look with approving loving eyes, a look that did not go unnoticed by Hoggle.

"Of course, your majesty," Hoggle answered, "Hoggle would love to."

As Hoggle fed Mary Elizabeth the last spoonful, Sarah wiped her mouth with a napkin from the table and picked her up.

"Thank you again, Hoggle," Sarah told him.

Jareth added, "See you this afternoon, Hoggle."

With that Jareth came up behind Sarah cooing to Mary Elizabeth as he wrapped his arms around Sarah before vanishing.

Hoggle smiled to himself as he thought about what Sarah had said about her and Jareth just being friends and laughed. "Yeah right," he said out loud as he continued to laugh, "Friends indeed."

When Sarah and Jareth arrived back at the castle, Sarah figured Jareth would leave to attend to his duties while she met with the ladies, but was surprised when he insisted on joining her. After an hour with the women, Sarah was finally able to secure a little time by herself with the ladies after letting Jareth see how uncomfortable they were around him even though he was being as gracious and friendly as he could be. His departure did not come without a reminder that the two had obligations, as he put it in front of the ladies, before he left.

Eventually the ladies departed and as soon as they Jareth was at Sarah's side.

After whisking Sarah away for the afternoon, the two had a wonderful time together enjoying the bliss of each other's company until heading to pick Mary Elizabeth up from Hoggle. Upon arriving they found Mary Elizabeth fast asleep and it was already getting a little late so upon Hoggle's entreaties not to disturb the child and assurances that it was okay for her to stay, Sarah agreed to let him keep her for another night.

After heading back to the castle Jareth walked Sarah back to her room kissing her at the door.

"Goodnight, my love," Jareth said giving her another quick kiss.

Sarah bit her lip and told him, "You don't have to leave."

Jareth's expression grew bleak as he realized what Sarah was saying, "I will not take advantage of you."

"Jareth, you would not be taking advantage of me," Sarah insisted, "I want to be with you."

Sarah reached up wrapping her arms around Jareth's neck kissing him deeply pressing her body against his. Pushing her slightly away he groaned.

"You make being a gentleman too hard, love. But the answer is still no."

It had been a long time for Sarah and she knew what she wanted. She wanted to feel Jareth's touch. She gave him a sideways smirk leaning against him again. "It's not like I am inexperienced. I have been married and have a child."

"Sarah, I won't." Jareth looked almost stern as he unwrapped Sarah's arms from his body, which made Sarah slightly wary of him for the first time in a long time. "I will not take you to bed until proper vows are spoken. And I assure you I will not rush you into them." Jareth had sense enough to keep in mind that although Sarah was ready to move on that it was still too soon for her to jump into another marriage.

"Oh." Sarah felt ashamed and she tried not to feel rejected but it was difficult not to when to wanted to bond with Jareth in further ways.

Jareth noticed her suddenly sullen mood and took her hand.

Giving her a remorseful look he spoke to her softly, "Sarah, I love you and I want to be with you too. I wish I was a cad who could take you in there and ravish you until the morning's light, but I can't! It is the custom of my land not to bed a woman until they are properly bound together with their vows. I have been raised and lived with these customs for a long time and it is not easy to change my ways. Besides Sarah, as the king I do have to uphold the customs of my land. If I don't then others of the land won't using my failure to do so as a reason to do the same and I cannot let that happen. And besides, I would feel guilty not abiding by the custom because I do love you so."

Sarah's expression was one of being taken aback as she looked at Jareth. "I didn't mean to cause you unease. I just wanted you to know how much I wanted you."

"It's okay," he assured her and then with a roguish smile added, "I really did appreciate it."

Sarah blushed then appeared a bit mystified as a thought crossed her mind. "Does that mean you have never, um, been with another?"

Jareth busted out laughing. "Sarah I have lived quite a long time. I just went to your world when I needed, um let call it, a diversion. That way no one here knew about it. Well, that was until I saw you."

Sarah found herself speechless.

"Shall we say goodnight now, my love? It is late," Jareth filled the silence.

Sarah just nodded still unable to place her thoughts around Jareth's utter devotion to her.

Jareth leered at her a little before leaning down to kiss her. He pressed her against the wall as his tongue probed her mouth, hands feeling up and down her sides.

Sarah was absolutely breathless as Jareth pulled away.

"Just something to go to sleep on, my dear," he winked with a smirk, "Besides, I shouldn't be the only one taking a cold shower tonight."

Sarah watched him stride away with a grin pasted on his face.

After finally making it into her room after several minutes of standing outside of it still against the wall, she fell into bed wondering how she was ever going to sleep that night.


	37. Chapter 37

The Tragedy

Chapter 37

* * *

The weeks passed by as Jareth and Sarah fell into a comfortable routine. When Jareth was not occupying her time, Sarah continued to instruct the goblins, visit old friends, and make new friends. During this time Jareth had keep to his word to Sarah to her dismay.

In the mornings, Jareth continued to greet Sarah at her door and after their morning meal would take walks in the garden. In the afternoons, Jareth would take Sarah to places of the kingdom she had yet to see and proudly show her the beauty of his kingdom. In between these private escapes, Sarah's goblin lesson, and Jareth's duties, they visited the inhabitants of the kingdom and in returned received guests at the castle.

Jareth also arranged for several dinners and dances at the castle, but now always kept her at his side. Due to the king's obvious affections for the woman, no man dared to try to steal Sarah's attention away during these events other than quick, polite conversations. During the visits and events, Sarah noticed how the inhabitants of the kingdom were becoming more at ease around the now amiable king and it delighted her to observe the development.

Their routine had become so settled that it shocked and partially worried Sarah the morning about four months later when Jareth was not outside her door that morning. She found no note and called for Jareth, but received no response.

Troubled about Jareth's missing state, Sarah searched the castle until she found Tula.

"Tula, have you seen Jareth today?" Sarah readjusted Mary Elizabeth on her hip as she waited for Tula's answer.

"No, I have not," Tula told her.

"Hmm…I can't find him and he is not coming when I call for him. Do you happen to know if he had something important to do today," Sarah asked.

"I'm afraid not, but he is the king so something probably came up." Then with a reassuring smile, Tula added, "I would not worry. The king can take care of himself."

"I know. It's just not like him not to meet me in the mornings." Sarah shook her head and shrugged. "Oh well, he will probably be back here soon. So, who are those flowers from?"

In Tula's hands was a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Tula reddened as she told Sarah, "From Goglon."

"Goglon, I remember him. He was in one of our first groups and if I remember and very fast learner, which I still think had something to do with you. From the flowers, I guess my hutch was correct. Now, the only question is, do you have any interest in him?"

Tula gave her a shy smile, "Actually, we have been dating for a couple of months now. He has asked me to marry him and I have agreed."

Sarah's mouth dropped open in surprise. "Tula! That's wonderful! I can't believe you didn't mention it but that's wonderful!"

"Thank you," Tula replied now beaming.

"Oh, just wait till I tell Jareth," Sarah told her bubbling over with glee, "He has a surprise for you."

"Tell me what?" Jareth just then appeared behind them in the doorway.

Instead of answering Sarah turned around to speak but look strangely at Jareth because she could tell that he was hiding something behind him in the doorway.

"Before I tell you, where have you been?"

"Well, I went to go pick up something and I thought it would be better if it was a surprise," Jareth smiled still leaning in the doorway.

"And now are you going to tell me what this surprise is and or you going to keep it hidden behind you?" Sarah playfully stretched her head in different directions like she was trying to see passed him.

"It is actually less of a surprise from me and more of a surprise visit." Jareth stepped out of the way to reveal Toby standing behind him.

Toby gave her a boyish smile. "I thought it was time for a visit."

"Toby!" Sarah raced over him and hugged him. "It's good to see you!"

"You too," he told her and then looked at his niece, "And you too."

Jareth interrupted them, "So what was it you wanted to tell me?"

Sarah grinned as she turned back to Tula, "Tula is getting married. I didn't tell her your surprise."

"Really," Jareth asked Tula.

Tula shyly murmured, "Yes sir, but I intend to keep working at the castle if that is okay."

"I would be upset if you left," Jareth told her and then added, "But I do expect for you to take at least a week off after you get married. I know you will not want to but you will do so."

"Yes sir," Tula said.

"Oh, and for my surprise." Tula eyed Jareth curious as to what it could be. "I had mentioned to Sarah about wanting to do something for you in return for all your years of loyal service and she mentioned about your intentions of wanting to find a partner and marry. So therefore, we devised an idea."

He paused for dramatic effect.

"I plan to arrange for you to have the wedding of your dreams. And in addition, as the king, I intend on officiating the ceremony."

Tula gasped truly shocked, "I don't know what to say, my lord. It's too much. And for you to perform the ceremony that is among the highest honor anyone can have."

"Nonsense, with as much as you do and as loyal as you've been, it is not too much. And as far as what to say, a thank you will be fine," Jareth said forming a grin.

Tula was exuberant now. Out of blue shocking Jareth, Tula ran to Jareth hugging him around the waist due to her short height. "Oh, yes indeed. Thank you. Thank you."

Then, like a sudden realization of what she was doing took over as she looked up to see Jareth watching her with surprise. She blushed and backed away. "Oh, I'm sorry my lord. I didn't mean to. I got carried away."

Jareth just busted out laughing as Tula just stood there looking very timid.

"No need to apologize. I am certainly not going to be mad over a hug. Tula just because I am the king does not mean you cannot treat me like you treat others, or like a friend. It's nice to see you so happy." Jareth smiled as he leaned down and gave her a gentle hug.

"Remember that," he added.

"Oh, I will," Tula replied still looking a bit shocked by the exchange. Then a look like she had forgotten something crossed her face and she added, "I must go tell Goglon! Thank you, again."

With that she raced out of the room, leaving the others amused by her antics.

"You certainly made that, um, lady's day," Toby commented still a little unsure of the creatures of Jareth's world.

"He sure did," Sarah said beaming at Jareth with love in her eyes.

Jareth returned the smile. "Good, I'm glad."

Later as the three were sitting at the dining table with Toby holding his niece, Toby asked, "So how long has this been going on?"

"What?" Sarah asked him looking puzzled for she actually did not know what Toby was referring to at the moment.

Toby shook his head and smiled, "Do you think I don't already know? I saw this happening before it ever did. The silent exchange of looks the two of you have been exchanging since I arrived. And, the two of you trying to hide the fact that you are holding hands underneath the table like a couple of teenagers."

Jareth chuckled, "Busted," and pulled his and Sarah's hands out from underneath the table laying it on top of the table.

"Well, I was going to tell you before you left. It's just been a while since I saw you and I wanted to focus on what has been going on with you," Sarah gave her reasoning and then answered, "About a week after you left. Um, I mean a week here by the way. And what do you mean you already knew it was going to happen."

Toby pulled his eyebrows together making a face with his mouth. "Excuses, excuses." Relaxing his face back into its normal state, he continued, "And, yes, I saw it coming. Well, let's start with the fact that Jareth's feelings were obvious from the get-go."

He nodded at Jareth.

"I can't deny that," Jareth grinned chuckling a little.

Toby continued, "Then Sarah, I know you too well. You are my sister and I saw the way you were acting around Jareth. There was a light in your eyes when he was around and you were just so comfortable around him. It was like you had known him your whole life."

Sarah shrugged her shoulders. "That's because I guess in a way I have." She glanced at Jareth and smiled. "Or, at least known of him."

"Hmm…," Toby murmured. "I guess you are referring to the book. Have you ever found out anything about that?"

Both of the Sarah and Jareth shook their heads in unison.

"No, it would seem that it just appeared out of thin air, which is way I still believe it was someone from my kingdom is responsible for it because no one from your world could possibly have that kind of knowledge that was in the book about the Underground. And the ones who lived here and returned to the other world later on are sworn to secrecy with a spell they have to read that keeps them from revealing anything about this place. However, if it was someone from here, then the only thing that still puzzles me is the inaccuracies in the book. Why would someone in my world write about their homeland just to include malicious falsehoods? And, then the only one with visions and enough power to foresee Sarah and you in my future, who would actually risk crossing me, I know did not perform the action because I have already confronted her about it," Jareth contemplated the possibilities while explaining what little they did know.

An idea crossed Sarah's mind, "Do you think it could be someone from Malum that still holds a grudge? After all, I know that happened a long time ago, but is it possible? The individual might have been trying to prevent the two of us from getting involved by hoping I would come to despise you."

Jareth shook his head, "I really don't think so. That's not a bad idea, but those that were in power were put to death for their horrendous actions and the others were so elated to be free from the tyranny that no, I don't think so. Besides, the individual would have been wiser to not have made the book fall into your hands because then you would have never wished Toby away and I probably would have never done anything but watch you. I believe we are still more correct in assuming the book's purpose was to bring us together."

"Well now you mentioned the person you confronted. Did you ever think of the possibility of her lying," Toby questioned.

"I did for about two seconds while I was confronting her, but no she was not. I assure you of that." Jareth gave Toby a look of absolute certainty because he was positive with everything else Ladonna had told him that she would not be untrue about that.

Sarah decided it was time to change the subject knowing that Ladonna was a touchy subject for Jareth. "I guess we may never know. We may as well not ruin our evening continuing to try to figure it out tonight."

Jareth nodded, "You're right, my dear." He gave her a quick peck on the check.

"So I guess my girl here has her own bedroom now that the two of you are certainly sharing one," Toby surmised.

"Toby," Sarah exclaimed as her face grew maroon red with embarrassment.

Jareth appeared livid as he looked intensely at Toby before speaking in a flat angry tone. "I think that comment was a little uncalled for young man. You owe your sister an apology."

A remorseful look came across Toby's face. "I didn't mean anything by it. I'm sorry Sarah."

"Um, it's okay," Sarah said while trying to compose herself, moving her head in awkward directions before continuing kind of nervously, "Besides, um, it's against Jareth's customs to do so before marriage."

"Oh," Toby appeared astonished by the development.

Jareth cleared his throat, "Actually, Toby, it is against the customs of my land to even bed a woman before vows are spoken, which is why I became so offended by your comment. In my land doing so would be an irredeemable injustice to our honors."

"Understood, and again I did not mean anything by it," Toby told him. Then pursing his lips, he asked, "By the way, what is stopping the two of you from getting married? After all, you already act like you are married in every other way."

A silence fell across the room.

Sarah shrugged. "Jareth hasn't asked me yet. I've been waiting for a while now for him to do so." Sarah sent a teasing look over towards Jareth.

"Really? I was just trying to give you enough time to move on," Jareth enlightened her to why he had not done so. "Are you really ready to marry me?" Jareth observed her with a look that said waiting for her answer was pure torture.

Sarah nodded and asked meekly unsure of Jareth's intention with his question, "Is that a proposal?

"No, no that is not a proposal," Jareth shook his head resolutely.

Sarah's face fell flat as she felt her heart beat painfully in her chest heartbroken that her hope had been wrong.

Toby didn't know what to say to her shocked at what had just transpired between the two so remained silent as he continued to observe them.

Jareth rose to his feet and fell to a bended knee beside Sarah's chair. "No that is not a proposal because it is not the way I want to ask you. You deserve a better proposal than that."

Sarah's eyes were glued to Jareth looking dumbfounded.

Taking Sarah's left hand in his, he kissed it then looked up into her eyes.

"My beautiful, wonderful Sarah, I have been a miserable, lonely man. That was until you came into my life. I have loved you since the first time I saw you. You have changed my life. You have brought love and joy to one who was hollow and empty. You make me a better man, Sarah. You are my love, my life, my heart. Please, my love, honor me by agreeing to marry me and become my wife."

Opening his hand in front of Sarah, a small glimmer of light shone from his hand before fading to reveal a small ring with delicate designs on it and many small jewels cluster within the designs. It was stunning and so different from anything she had even seen. And as she thought with warm fondness _So, Jareth._

Not able to bring the words to her lips as her eyes brimmed with tears, Sarah just nodded mouthing a yes to him.

Jareth radiated with joy as he slid the ring gently on Sarah's finger, then stood up pulling her out of the chair hugging her to him while swinging her around to him in an elated state.

Finally settling her down, he said in the most loving voice, "I love you. I love you."

After finding her breath, Sarah returned his devotion, "And I you. I love you, Jareth."

With that Jareth gently crushed his lips to hers pulling her into a passionate embrace hugging her to him wanting to never let her go and as far as he was concerned he wasn't going to.


	38. Chapter 38

The Tragedy

Chapter 38

* * *

"Ugh, get a room!"

In their passion, the two lovebirds had completely forgotten everything else. At the sound of Toby's voice they separated with a loving smile at each other.

With one arm still around Sarah, Jareth squinted one eye at Toby. "Hey, it is MY castle, so technically these are all my rooms." He laughed, and then added in jest, "So, if you don't like it, you can get out!"

Sarah stifled a laughed and Toby just shook his head.

"Any way, I am happy for you both," Toby told them, "Just make certain you let me know when the wedding is in my world's time so I can be prepared to come back here."

Jareth smiled, "Of course, what would be a wedding without a best man."

"Really," Toby asked standing up moving towards the couple.

"Yes, I couldn't think of a better person to do it. Unfortunately because of the way I lived before your sister's presence in my life, I really never made any friends so you are probably the closest to one I have and soon enough we will be related. Also, remember, you are still my heir and Sarah's only living relative besides her daughter so it is only right for you to be part of the ceremony and give your blessing," Jareth explained. He then asked, "From what you said, we do have your blessing as Sarah's relative?"

Before Toby could answer, Sarah injected, "Um, actually Jareth, I was hoping for Toby to walk me down the aisle to give me away." She turned to Toby, "I know you have already performed this for me once, but how about a second time?"

Although Toby was just a teenager when David and Sarah had married, since their father had passed, he had walked his older sister down the aisle to her future husband and was about to do it again.

"Of course, Sarah. You know I would," Toby said with a brotherly smile as he hugged her with one arm while he still held his niece with the other. Turning to Jareth, he added, "Not that you really need it, but yes, I give my blessing."

"Good, thank you," Jareth said then winkled his brow, "Now I must actually find someone else." Then, a smile formed across his face. "I know who would be perfect." He turned to look at Sarah still smiling. "How do you think Hoggle would like to be the best man?"

Sarah's look became doubtful. "He would mumble and groan about it and pretend like he is only doing it because you are his king or because I am his friend, but I think he would secretly be tickled."

"I think you're right, my love," Jareth agreed, "I can't wait to ask him. I think he may just have a hard enough time believing we are marrying each other. It should be funny to see his reaction."

"I really don't think he will be as shocked as you think or Tula either," Sarah told him.

"Why do you say that?" Jareth was curious how Sarah had come by her conclusion.

"Because of things both of them have said before. I think both were as observant as Toby and saw it coming."

"I'm not that surprised about Tula considering she practically seems to live in the castle. Oh well, I still can't wait to tell them both. Actually, I can't wait to tell the whole kingdom. We should have a ball and Toby you should stay and attend it too! You must!"

Toby was about to tell him that he needed to get back to his world when Sarah spoke first, "Jareth, you can't! Not yet anyway!"

"Why? Why should we wait to celebrate our happiness with everyone," Jareth asked then wondered with worry, "Is there a reason you don't want others to know? Are you regretting your answer?"

Sarah shook her head back and forth quickly, "No, no, Jareth, that's not it. I want to let the whole world or both worlds know! However, think of Tula. She just got engaged herself. Our announcement would spoil and overshadow her celebration and nuptials."

Jareth realized Sarah was right with him being the king the whole kingdom would be aflutter with their news. "I don't want to do that to her. We should wait then, but as soon as the talk of Tula's wedding starts to cease afterwards, we will make ours."

"Agreed," Sarah smiled, "Besides I already know who will be the matron of honor."

Jareth and Sarah did wait until after Tula's wedding to announce their engagement not wanting to usurp the event they were planning for her. Although, it was difficult to keep the news quiet, they managed.

Tula's wedding had been a beautiful ceremony with Jareth officiating the vows and Sarah serving as Tula's matron of honor. The whole kingdom had shown up to witness the event. Some came just to see if the king was really performing the ceremony, which he had never done before. Previous kings had, but never Jareth. Everyone was amazed at the details of the wedding, which Sarah had helped Tula to plan.

Two weeks after the ceremony, the talk about the ceremony had finally started to die away. It was then that Jareth called for another ball to be held with a message that the kingdom would learn of important news whilst attending. As a result, the whole kingdom again turned out.

Hoggle had offered to take care of Mary Elizabeth during the ball so they would not be burden with caring for the child during the celebration. However, was dismayed to learn that Jareth specifically wanted him to be there for a reason but would not tell him why. Therefore, Hoggle came but grumbled about it.

As for Mary Elizabeth, Sarah brought her to the ball for the first little bit of the evening. Mary Elizabeth seemed to take to all the attention she received from the guests wanting to coo and awe over her until Sarah told everyone surrounding them that it was time to lay her down for the night.

A few days before, Jareth had surprised Sarah with a nursery for Mary Elizabeth in the room next to his bedroom, or as he told her with a mischievous sparkle in his eyes, what would soon be their bedroom. Jareth had tried to allow Sarah to get him to hire a nursemaid for the child, at least for the night, but Sarah had refused. In fact, it was still where the only ones besides herself and Jareth that she ever really let watch the child without her supervision was Tula, Hoggle, and of course Toby the time he visited. Jareth understood why though, considering the fact that she had almost lost the child, he really could not blame her over her need to be so overprotective. Therefore, instead he had bespelled the room with a spell that would send out a mental alert to both him and Sarah if Mary Elizabeth woke up crying so that one of them could then go and attend to her.

It was soon after Sarah came back from laying Mary Elizabeth down that Jareth and Sarah, both in gleeful smiles, made their announcement to everyone. Cheers of joy soared from all over the room upon their announcement.

Afterwards, it took them forever due to well wishers to find their way to Hoggle.

"So Hoggle, are you not glad you showed up now," Sarah asked him.

Hoggle cleared his throat. "See I told you earlier the feelings were more than friendship. Sees what you know. Happy for you, but Sarah should have listened earlier."

Sarah rolled her eyes, "Hoggle."

"Everything takes time," Jareth interceded casting a meaningful look at Hoggle.

"Besides, I mentioned I wanted you here for a reason," Jareth continued, "I have something very important to ask you to do."

"Yes," Hoggle said with a hint of frustration in his voice figuring it was some stupid task in the labyrinth that Jareth had for him to do.

Jareth grinned making Hoggle cringe. "Well, I still need a best man for the wedding."

Hoggle became wide-eyed and find his mouth gaping. "You mean you want Hoggle to…," he trailed off.

Jareth nodded. "Yes."

"But why me," he asked.

"Because you are probably the one most connected to mine and Sarah's story," he looked at his fiancée with a loving glance before turning back to Hoggle, "So, how about it? And before you answer, please keep in mind that this is a request, no actually a favor, from a new friend not a command from your king."

Lately, with all the time Hoggle had been spending around the castle, Sarah and Jareth at Hoggle's place, or Hoggle just taking care of Mary Elizabeth, Jareth had truly started thinking of Hoggle as a friend and was hoping he would look upon him in a light other than as the king he had known.

Hoggle was a little taken back that Jareth had called him his friend, but then he thought about the way Jareth had been treating him ever since Sarah had came back into Jareth's life and decided that maybe he was right, maybe they had became friends or, at least, were in the process of becoming so. "Well, I guess I wouldn't mind doing it," Hoggle answered, "for my friends."

"Thank you," Jareth replied with a chuckle as he glanced at Sarah. Sarah fought to contain her laughter. She had known perfectly well how Hoggle would react.

"What!" Hoggle crossed his arms. "What is it that you two are laughing so much about? What did I say that was so funny?"

"Oh, nothing," Jareth said as him and Sarah broke out into even more laughter.

After calming down their laughter and parting from Hoggle, Jareth and Sarah found Tula with her husband among the throngs of beings.

"Congratulations," she told them, "but one question. Why did you wait so long to announce it?"

"What do you mean," Sarah asked puzzled by the question. Jareth appeared a little bewildered by the question as well.

Tula smiled and stated with certainty, "The two of you have been engaged since the last time your brother was here."

Sarah and Jareth exchanged shocked looks. "How did you know," Sarah questioned.

"Besides the dreamy way you both have been acting," Tula gave her a stare and then said, "that beautiful ring Jareth gave you that you wear on you left ring finger is hard to miss."

Jareth shook his head in amusement. "Tula, you are just way too observant. And by the way I wanted to tell everyone that day but Sarah thought of you and we did not want to overshadow your wedding with our news."

"I understand and thank you," Tula expressed her gratefulness.

"Speaking of the wedding," Sarah began, "Since I was recently the matron of honor at my friend's wedding, I was hoping she would return the favor."

Tula beamed with pleasure. "Of course I will Sarah! I would be honored."

Sarah smiled at the little goblin that had become one of her closest friends since returning to the Underground.

Jareth and Sarah set the date for their wedding as only a month after the announcement at the ball. Although Sarah would have rather a smaller wedding she knew it was impossible. Jareth was the king after all and the whole kingdom with the exception of Ladonna, the Mystic, was invited to it.

Also, Sarah was not really planning the wedding. Jareth had allowed Sarah to choose the main colors she wanted for the ceremony, but otherwise, he was planning the ceremony and reception wanting to surprise Sarah with a magnificent event. Besides for the colors, the only other things Sarah was able to do was to choose the designs and fabrics that the dressmakers were using to make Tula's matron of honor dress and Sarah's wedding dress. This was the one area that Sarah had control over and as a result would not even let Jareth see the designs for her wedding dress. She had told Jareth that the first time he saw the dress she wanted to be wearing it walking down the aisle towards him. Also, she had a secret about the dress that she did not want Jareth to know about, her little surprise.

Soon the month passed and the morning of the wedding arrived. Knowing it would be a hectic day, Sarah spent the morning with her daughter until Hoggle arrived to watch until the ceremony was over. It was then that Tula and Sarah went to Sarah's room to get ready for the ceremony.

Tula was finishing Sarah's hair when they heard a knock at the door.

"Who's there," Sarah called out.

"It's me," Jareth called back.

Sarah was still only in her robe and her wedding dress in a beige dress bag, but was not about to let Jareth into the room.

"Jareth, what are you doing out there? You know you are not allowed in here. You agreed!"

She heard Jareth chuckled softly. "I did and I won't come in, I promise, a man of my word. That is, unless you want me to come in. I do desire very much to do so."

"Sorry, but I don't think so. You will just have to wait." Sarah gave Tula a look and shook her head giggling slightly.

"Alright then," Jareth said with a playful pouty voice, "I came by to let you know that I am back with your brother."

"Hey Sarah, can I come in," she heard her brother's voice ask.

"Only if you get my devious fiancée to leave first." Jareth had playfully been trying to sneak a peek at Sarah's dress since it was complete. Sarah knew that if Jareth had really wanted to then he could have anytime he had wanted to, but it was a game they had joyfully kept up.

Jareth cheerfully laughed as he said through the door, "Alright, I'm leaving. Just remember, I'll be waiting for you at the end of the aisle. Till then, my beautiful bride."

She listened to Jareth's laughter trail down the hallway as Toby slowing pushed opened the door and entered.

"My, my, you do clean up well," Sarah said as she examined her brother in his suit that was a compromise of the original outfit which had occurred after much debate. Toby had agreed to wear the top part with no problem when Jareth had presented it to him. It was a little too fancy for Toby's taste, but since it was Sarah and Jareth's wedding day, he had accepted it without saying anything. However, when he saw the tight legging pants, he had absolutely refused to wear them telling Jareth that he would be red in front of everyone taking the attention away from his sister. With that explanation, Jareth had given him a look to show that he really didn't believe him, but gave in and had agreed to Toby wearing straight dress pants while telling him that it was going against the custom.

Toby shook his head. "Thanks, sis. By the way, shouldn't you be about really yourself?"

"I've been ready," she smiled, "But as far as getting dressed, the only thing left is putting on my wedding dress and shoes, which I will go ahead and do if you will wait outside for a few minutes."

"Of course," he said and added, "Let me know when you are ready."

When Sarah called Toby back into the room, he smiled, "You look beautiful, sis."

"Thanks, I just hope Jareth likes it," Sarah answered.

"Trust me, he will, especially as long as the woman wearing the dress meets him at the end of that aisle agreeing to marry him."

Sarah smiled. "That won't be an issue. I've been ready."

"I love you, sis. And, I am glad you found someone else. I was truly worried after David what might happen, but I can see how truly happy you and Jareth are," Toby told her putting a hand on hers.

Sarah felt her voice catch for just an instance while Tula ducked into the bathing room figuring the sibling needed a moment from the course the conversation had taken.

Nodding her head, "Yes, I know. I thought when David died that I would never find another. In fact, I did not want another. But Jareth…" Sarah smiled to herself. "Maybe things happen for a reason," she added.

"Maybe, they do," Toby agreed. "Oh, by the way, I almost forgot. I brought you something thinking you might like to have it with you today."

Sarah looked puzzled at Toby. "What?"

"In straightening the house, I went through some old boxes and found this in one of dad's." He paused pulling out a necklace with a beautiful charm that had a gold ring band on either side of it. "I know this wasn't my mother's, so I believe it must have been your mother's."

The moment she had saw Toby pulled the necklace out, she had knew it was her mother's, she remembered it. "Yes, my mother wore this necklace every day."

She took the necklace from him and started turning the rings to view the inscriptions. "And these were their wedding rings. Thank you for bringing me this. It means a lot to me." She threw her arms around her brother trying to hold back the tears of reminiscing back.

Upon hearing her sniffle, Toby pulled her away grabbing a tissue of the table dapping at her eyes.

"Stop that now or you will have to completely redo your makeup." He smiled then said, "Besides you don't want to be all red-eyed when Jareth sees you."

"Sorry, it's just I haven't seen these since I was a little kid. I can't believe I never found them before now." Turning around she asked, "Will you please put it on me?"

Toby took the necklace from her, hooking it around her neck. Turning her around, he said, "Perfect."

"Thank you, you don't know what this means to mean. I can't believe I ever wished you away. I love you so much." Sarah had to stop herself because she was on the verge of crying again.

"Hey, just remember, if never wished me away, you would have never met Jareth."

She just nodded. The book briefly crossed her mind wondering how someone knew she would eventually wish her brother away. She pushed the thought from her mind telling herself that today it did not matter. Today, she was to married her Goblin King, her Jareth.

After letting Tula know they were ready, Tula led them out of the room with Toby escorting his sister as they headed towards the open outside garden area where the ceremony was to take place.


	39. Chapter 39

The Tragedy

Chapter 39

* * *

Toby and Sarah stopped just outside the entrance of a fine pergola with flowers draping from the top and sides of it. Tula stepped in front of the pergola to let the organist see her and know that the bride was ready. As the music began to play, Sarah was surprised to see Sir Didymus ride up on Ambrosius with Mary Elizabeth dressed in a very cute but elegant little flower girl dress riding in front of him. "Hey sweetheart, what are you doing," she cooed to her daughter leaning down to kiss her head. Didymus was helping Mary Elizabeth to hold a bowl of flower petals.

She smiled as Sir Didymus looked at her. "My lady, I am honored to be included in your wedding," he nodded before riding on. Sarah could see from her spot them ride a little ways while Mary Elizabeth with help from Sir Didymus throwing flowers. It was so adorable Sarah thought as she watched them before they disappeared from the area she could view from where she was standing. She was elated by how Jareth had managed to include both her daughter and her friend in the wedding.

The music change indicating it was time. Sarah and Toby stepped to the entrance of the pergola. As they walked through, Sarah's eyes went straight to Jareth. Beforehand, Sarah had been eager to view what Jareth had done for the decorations knowing he would be anxious to know that she had be pleased by his creation. Sarah forgot about that as she spotted her future husband waiting for her. She smiled never taking her eyes off of him as she walked towards him.

In turn, Jareth's eyes were glued to Sarah from the moment she stepped into his view. He had become breathless upon seeing his future wife step into view. Sarah was beautiful to him every day but seeing her in her wedding gown coming towards him ready to marry him and spend the rest of their lives together made her seem even more stunning than normal.

And her wedding dress, Jareth was astounded by what she had chosen to wear. He could not believe it when he saw her thinking he was seeing a vision of the past. Sarah was wearing a dress very similar to her play princess gown with her hair pulled back and up with a flower ring just like the first time he had ever saw her. The only differences were that this dress was made of a shiny satin material of better quality and as Jareth noticed was better tailored to Sarah's now womanly curves.

He had told her that upon seeing her wearing that princess dress in the park the first time he had saw her, he thought she was a princess and had loved seeing her in it when he went to watch her. He smiled at the memory of watching her in that dress many times before.

After overcoming his reaction to seeing her wedding dress, he brought his eyes to Sarah's as she continued to walk towards him a vision of pure beauty to him.

When Toby and Sarah reached the end, Jareth stepped down to take Sarah's hand and lead her up the steps.

"You look," Jareth began as he started to lead up her the steps, "there are no words to describe how wonderful you look. I love you."

"And I you my soon to be husband," she smiled at him.

The Holy One, as he was called, who was officiating their vows, spoke to Sarah, "Before we began with the actually vows, I must ask you to take a vow of dedication to the serve our kingdom and its citizens by endeavoring to ensure that you will see to the best interest of our kingdom and its citizens as our future queen. Only with this vow, can it be allowed for you to marry our king and become our queen for our queen must have the best interest of not only her husband, the king, in her heart, but of her populace as well. Do you Sarah, vow this?"

Jareth had regretfully forewarned Sarah that this was a required part of any royal wedding in his land that he wish he could eliminate but could not because it had been established almost a millennium ago so Sarah was prepared to take this vow. Although prepared to take the vow, she still worried about actually serving the citizens as their queen for she truly did not know anything about being queen, but Jareth had assured her that he would help her to learn.

"Yes, I vow to look after the best interest of not only the king," she glanced over and smiled at Jareth before turning to the crowd slightly below, "but of the kingdom and its inhabitants."

A cheer rose forth than quickly died away.

Turning back towards him, the Holy Man gave her a nod. "The vow had been spoken and agreed upon. Now we may move forth."

The Holy Man proceeded through the vows of marriage coming to the close.

"Do you Sarah take King Jareth to be your husband," he asked her.

She smiled lovingly at Jareth. "I do for now and for always."

"And do you King Jareth take Sarah to be your wife," he directed the question towards the king.

Jareth smiled at Sarah his eyes glittering. "I do for now and for always."

"If there are no objections," the Holy Man announced with a pause to allow time for any objections if one was to occur before continuing, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may kiss the bride."

Sarah tilted her head up as Jareth leaned down to gently kiss her. A roar of approval erupted from the crowd. Jareth and Sarah ended their kiss and turned towards the crowd.

The Holy Man then addressed the crowd, "I am please to introduce King Jareth and his wife, Queen Sarah." The crowd again erupted into applause. Although she knew it was to be, Sarah found it odd to hear the title of queen being placed in front of her name.

Signaling Sir Didymus over with Mary Elizabeth, Jareth leaned down to take Mary Elizabeth from him cradling her in his arms. Sarah reached over playing and cooing to her child.

Raising his hand the Holy Man silenced the crowd. "King Jareth has also asked me to introduce the rest of his new family, his new brother-in-law, Toby Williams," the Holy Man said gesturing to Toby, "And his new daughter, Princess Mary Elizabeth. Normally, a step-child does not receive the title of the step-parent, but the king has asserted that Mary Elizabeth will be raised as his own and has insisted she receives the privileges that come with being the daughter of a king."

The Holy One reminded the crowd of the reception in the Great Hall as Jareth quickly escorted Sarah down a back way so they could have a few moments alone before being molested with congratulations at the reception.

"You didn't have to do that," she told him.

"I already love her like she is my own," he told her smiling down at the child in his arms before glancing back at Sarah.

Sarah had seen how much Jareth cared for her child since the first day he had came to the hospital to return the child to her.

She smiled, "I know. I can tell. I can also tell you are going to spoil her rotten."

"That I am," Jareth cooed at the child, "But I am going to be strict as well when needed."

Sarah laughed at him knowing he was going to be a good father to Mary Elizabeth. She knew her daughter would know the love of both men who Mary Elizabeth would know as her fathers for she would tell her daughter often just how much David had loved her and she would feel the love first hand that Jareth felt for her.

Jareth turned to her and asked, "By the way, how did you like the decorations?"

She glanced back slightly to observe what she could still see noticing some beautiful flowers dapping down in places and two eye-catching rock columns made up of different stones. She stated with warm, "They were lovely."

He shook his head at her. "You didn't even pay them any attention, did you?"

Biting her lower lip, Sarah looked down slightly and then back up with a look of embarrassment on her face. "Sorry, I meant to. I just became too distracted by a strikingly, handsome king waiting to marry me. I just couldn't manage to take my eyes off him and I am still having trouble with that by the way."

Jareth expressed a quiet laughter, "I understand. I too was distracted by a magnificent creature making her way towards me. Well, at least note to Ludo that you like his stone columns that I asked him to build in order to include him in some capacity."

"I will. Thanks for telling me about Ludo's part and thanks for including the others especially my precious little one here." She reached over and placed a finger on Mary Elizabeth's nose. "That was such a cute idea with her and Sir Didymus."

"Oh, I had to include her in some way. After all, she is our daughter," he smiled up at her and continued, "And, your wedding dress…"

"Do you like it," Sarah questioned eager to hear what he thought of her surprise.

"I love it. I could scarcely believe it when I saw it. I had such fond memories of that dress and seeing you wear one so similar for our wedding," he shook his head slightly, "just took my breath away."

They arrived at the Great Hall outside the private entrance way the royals normally used to enter.

"Before we go in," Jareth said. He leaned down and stole a quick kiss.

"Do we have to go in," she questioned teasingly, "We could just escape away to be alone together."

He acted like he was thinking about it before answering her. "Unfortunately, we do. Although, the truth be told, with as much as I adore that dress of yours, I would rather get it off of you," he told her with a leering look in his eye letting his hand at her waist fall to the curve of her backside.

"You're terrible," she complained as the doors opened and Sarah quickly grabbed Jareth's hand moving it back up to her waist keeping it there as they entered trying to distract her mind with other thoughts.

He just gave her a smoldering look as they went and took their seats. This just made her heart thump harder in anticipation of final sharing Jareth's bed with him. She blushed at the thought.

Sarah knew this celebration would be a long one and that there was no way to escape it as the citizens of the kingdom began to gather in a line near their table to offer congratulations on the marriage and well-wishes to their new queen.

As the evening wore on into the night, Sarah noticed that Mary Elizabeth was becoming a little cranky. She excused herself to go laid down Mary Elizabeth.

Just as she was finishing laying the child down, she heard a voice that was unfamiliar but she was certain she had heard before come from behind her, "Hello, Sarah. I have a gift for you." She froze in terror as she recalled whose voice it was.

Jareth stiffened with an abruptness and whispered in a panic, "Sarah."

Toby who was near and noticed Jareth's alarm, asked, "What's wrong?"

Not answering Jareth was on his feet taking off forgetting in his rush to get to Sarah to use his power to just transport himself to Mary Elizabeth's room.

Toby, knowing something was wrong involving his sister and possibly his niece, was at Jareth's heels struggling to keep pace with the taller man's long strides.

* * *

Chapters 38 and 39, I was originally planning on being one chapter but as I started it, I found it too long and it seemed that as one chapter that it jumped around too much trying to cover too many details.

When I thought of the idea of Mary Elizabeth and Sir Didymus and had Hoggle involved in the wedding, I felt bad not having some role for Ludo to play in the wedding so that is why I stuck the stone columns bit in.


	40. Chapter 40

The Tragedy

Chapter 40

Didn't mean for this chapter to take so long. I started writing it and did not like the way it was flowing so I backed off for a bit while working on a different story and had a hard time breaking away from that one to get back to this one, but when I did I liked the results a lot better than the way the chapter was developing the first time around. Also, I should have the next chapter up in a few days because I already have it along with part of the following chapter written, I just need to type it.

* * *

She turned around abruptly seeing the woman face to face.

"Get away from us," she hissed at the woman while positioning herself in such a way to be able to spring in attack if the woman came nearer to her child. She did not know what the woman wanted and was not going to take any chance around her child for she was going to do whatever was necessary to protect her daughter.

Eying her, the woman told her, "I will not leave until I bestow my gift on you."

"I do not want your gift." Sarah glared at her unrelentingly.

The woman wagged her finger. "It is not nice to refuse a gift."

Still glaring, Sarah told her in a pleasant voice, "Well, too bad because I don't want it."

"And may I ask why," the woman asked curious, "for people normally like to accept gifts."

Gritting her teeth, Sarah informed her, "Because I do not want to end up like Lorena."

Sarah watched as the woman's face saddened. "I did not intend to harm my cousin. I loved her like a sister. It I could bring her back, I would. You must realize this."

The truth was in her voice. Sarah could hear it but it did not deter her determination to not let Ladonna do whatever she had planned.

"Maybe so, but you still caused her death. And I know how badly it crushed Jareth's heart. You will not get the same chance with me."

Sarah looked at Ladonna with a fierce resolute gaze.

"Yes, I am regretful for that too. I did not intend to cause such heartache." Ladonna nodded with melancholy before continuing, "The king suffered nearly as much as I have over her death. I did not what I thought was best for everyone at the time. I knew that you were his destiny. I knew he could not marry Lorena because it was not meant to be and would be a disaster for the three of you. I was just trying to prevent their marriage so the king could discover you, the one he was meant to be with. How was I to know everything would go so drastically wrong? That is why I am here, why I will give you this gift, to try to make amends for my costly mistake, to make it up to the king, to the man who loved my cousin so and who loves you so."

It did not matter what Ladonna had said, Sarah was still caution of this woman not trusting her. Sarah glanced to the door wandering if she could grab Mary Elizabeth quick enough and escape through it. She doubted it knowing how strong Ladonna's powers were suppose to be.

Ladonna saw her glance and clicked her tongue at Sarah. "I would not try that if I were you. You would not make it."

All uncertainty left Sarah's mind as she now knew she was right, she could not evade Ladonna or her gift, at least not without help.

"You should leave before I have to call for Jareth. I will not be held responsible for what he will do to you when he find out about this and I have already be too long that he will wonder why and I will feel the need to tell him. If you leave now, I may be able to persuade him to grant you some mercy."

Sarah realized that she actually would need to tell Jareth what had occurred even if Ladonna left as she requested even though Sarah was well aware of what Jareth would do to this woman, she didn't know exactly what he would do but knew it would be frightful. But Sarah knew it had to be done for Jareth was the only one that could ensure her and her daughter's safety against this woman.

Ladonna shrugged her shoulders. "Tell the king or you may as well call for the king right now if you desire. I fear not what he will do."

With Ladonna's words, Sarah's panic rose. "Jareth! Jareth," her voice boomed out, "I need you! I need help! HELP ME!"

A slow smile crept across the powerful woman's face. "He comes for you, but he will not be able to reach you."

Sarah's eyes widen. "What do you mean?"

"I have placed a shield upon the room to prevent anyone from entering or exiting the room until it is removed."

"But Jareth is just as powerful as you are it not more so. He will be able to break the shield," Sarah reasoned through her fear.

Ladonna waved a hand. "The king may be more powerful than I, but knowledge is a powerful foe. He will be able to break my shield just as I could break one of his, but it will take him a while for him to do so, long enough that my task will be complete by then."

"What task," Sarah asked frantically trying to delay Ladonna aware that Jareth could get to her and Mary Elizabeth if only he had enough time. "I thought you said it was a gift."

"A task, a gift, it's one in the same," Ladonna told her, "I must perform a task in order to give you the gift."

"What exactly is the task," Sarah questioned.

Ladonna's eyes glowed. "Oh, you'll see."

Sarah glared at her and with menace in her voice told her, "Whatever it is, you had better not harm my child."

"I will not even touch that precious little babe," Ladonna promised. Then snatching both of Sarah's hands in hers informed her, "That is enough talk. I will now begin the process."

Sarah tried to pull away but found that no amount of effort allowed her to even more. Ladonna must have placed a spell on her to prevent her from railing against the woman she realized as her mind desperately pleaded in her mind, Jareth please hurry.

Just outside the room, Jareth and Toby reached the door just to find themselves hitting an invisible force. The force only pushed Jareth back a few feet while throwing Toby across the hallway into the wall.

Jareth turned to see Toby's body crumpled on the floor. He leaped across to the young man.

"Toby, are you okay?" Jareth was rolling him over on his back as he glanced back at the doorway worry for Sarah, Mary Elizabeth, and Toby creasing his brow before turning back to the lad.

What have I done by bringing all of you here, Jareth questioned in his mind.

Hearing Toby groan, Jareth felt a temporary wave of relief.

"Can you tell me how badly hurt you are," Jareth asked him.

Sitting up with Jareth's help, Toby answered, "I'm fine, just sore. What was that? Why did it not throw you against the wall like it did me?" As he had been thrown backward he had seen Jareth still on his feet barely being pushed back from the door.

"It's a shield to keep anyone from entering or exiting. My power protected me from its full strength. Here, take my hand." Jareth extended his hand helping Toby to his feet.

"What? Does that mean that my sister and niece are trapped in there and we cannot get in there," Toby asked in a panic.

"Not quite," Jareth said in a low determine voice, "I'll get in there no matter how long it takes and then she will rue what she had done."

Forming a crystal in his hand, he threw it at the door. It shattered as it hit the shield illuminating a light spiraling outward. In a blink of an eye, Jareth formed another crystal heaving it at the shield.

As Jareth continued ramming that shield with crystals, Toby asked, "Will that work and who is the 'she' in there? Do you know who is doing this?"

While throwing the crystal balls of power, Jareth answered him, "It will work. I will bring it down. And yes, I know perfectly well who is behind this for only one other individual in this kingdom besides myself can create a shield this strong."

"Ladonna," he hissed.

"Why through? Why is she doing," Toby continued to ask trying desperately to squelch some of his anxiety while feeling utterly useless standing there able to do absolutely nothing to help Jareth get through the invisible wall of magic to his sister and niece.

"Honestly, I am not sure. Ladonna knows I can break through her shield in only a matter of time so whatever her plan is she only wants to delay me from getting to Sarah."

"She wouldn't hurt her or Mary Elizabeth would she," Toby asked failing at his attempt to keep a grip on his nerves.

"She had better not," Jareth growled. "I do not think she would, not intentionally at least. The only time she ever did do harm to someone it was a mistake for it was her own cousin."

"Her own cousin," Toby gasped in astonishment, "It she could do that to her own cousin, then what exactly is she capable of doing to people who are not related to her?"

"As I said, it was an accident, one of her own making, but an accident nevertheless," Jareth huffed out as he continued to throw his energy at the magical wall. "I was there when it happened for her cousin, Lorena, was my best friend and Ladonna was devastated by what she had done."

"Then why did she do it," Toby questioned his curiosity taking over.

"Well, Ladonna was trying to prevent my impending marriage to Lorena and she recently claimed when I questioned her thinking she was behind the book that it was because she knew about Sarah being in my future. That is why I do not understand Ladonna doing this since she wanted us together unless like Sarah thought when Ladonna decided to pull one of her tricks earlier by revealing part of this to Sarah that Ladonna is trying to provoke me into ending her life," Jareth explained to Toby partially to distract him from his own worry and partially to soothe the boy's worries for his sister. What Jareth kept to himself was that Ladonna could have ended her own life anytime she had wanted; that she did not need Jareth's help to do so.

"I hope you're right about this woman not harming her," Toby said with a frown of concern.

Jareth silently prayed he was right too.

"I'm almost through the shield," Jareth said, then added with a tone of authority, "When it comes down you grab Sarah and Mary Elizabeth and get out of there. I do not know what will happen and I want all three of you out of harm's way. Understand?"

Jareth worried that Sarah would be determined to stay because of him but hoped her mothering instincts would compel her to take the child and leave instead of attempting to give Toby the child and forcing him to leave while she stayed.

"Yes," Toby answered and prepared himself.

As the shield evaporated, Jareth blasted the door. The two men barreled into the room. Toby was bounding towards his sister when Jareth grabbed him dragging him to a halt.


	41. Chapter 41

The Tragedy

Chapter 41

* * *

"What are you doing," Toby screamed at him, "You told me to get them out!"

"You cannot, not Sarah at least," Jareth warned him, "Ladonna has started a spell on her and depending on what it is any interruption has the potential to kill Sarah, Ladonna, or both. Once they are started certain spells have to be completed or the energy invoked will cause death if not harnessed properly."

"So we can only stand here while she suffers whatever is being done to her?" Toby's panicked look turned to one of anger in a heartbeat as his glare fell on Jareth. "Shouldn't you as the great and powerful Goblin King be able to do something?"

"If only I could," Jareth said in anguish feeling the boy's frustration, "But without knowing what the spell is, I would be risking Sarah's life, which I will not do, if I tried to stop or counteract it. And we do not know if she is suffering. We just need to be ready when the spell ends."

Jareth glanced at Toby and the young man nodded still appearing a bit peeved as they moved towards the women. Toby checked on his niece who was luckily somehow sleeping through the whole ordeal. He noticed Jareth's glance towards the child to check also as Jareth positioned himself where he could throw his body in between the two women if necessary. Toby stayed by the crib but near enough Sarah that he could grab both in a hurry when the time. He did not want to disturb the child yet aware that caring for an upset child would distract him.

An undeterminable amount of time passed as Jareth and Toby impatiently waited in agony. Jareth felt the change in magic just before seeing both women collapsing. Sarah fell backwards away from Jareth's outstretched hands. Toby quickly rushed to catch his sister's falling body. Hastily, Jareth flung a crystal ball behind Sarah. Toby found himself falling under the weight of his sister's body to his knees among masses of cushions and pillows. Jareth was at their side as Toby laid her down on the pillows.

"Sarah, Sarah," Jareth called out, "Can you hear me? Please, wake up!"

"Sarah, please," Toby added.

Sarah moaned as she opened her eyes. She smiled. "Jareth, I knew you wouldn't let her shield stop you."

Jareth and Toby both let out a sigh of relief. "Of course not. No one can keep me from you, my love," Jareth told her and asked, "Are you okay? How do you feel?"

"Just exhausted," Sarah told him then asked, "What happened?"

Jareth frowned. "All I know is that Ladonna performed some spell on you." He glanced back over his shoulder at Ladonna then back to Sarah. "Did she mention anything about what she was doing; any clue about what the spell could have been about? I do not want to worry you and I know you feel fine now, but if later…it is important to know, just in case."

Sarah shook her head. She quickly related everything that had occurred to Jareth. She then cried out in a panic, "Mary Elizabeth!"

"Shhh..She's okay. She slept through everything," Toby reassured her.

She closed her eyes. "Thank goodness." Opening her eyes she asked Jareth, "Do you think Ladonna was telling the truth about just trying to make amends? Do you have any idea what she could have been doing to me?"

"I wish I knew," Jareth bit his lower lip as he glanced back over his shoulder to Ladonna again, "but only she does."

Noticing for the first time that Ladonna was laying on the floor barely behind Jareth, Sarah asked, "What happened to her? Is she still alive?"

Still staring at Ladonna, Jareth plainly said with no empathy in his voice, "Passed out from the spell she performed on you. I do not know if she is still alive for I have not bothered to check." He reached his hand out placing it on the woman's wrist. He could feel a faint pulse.

"She is alive," Jareth told the others turning back towards them, "but barely."

Sarah was pulling herself up into a sitting position when Jareth felt his hand being seized.

"Jareth," Ladonna weakly called out.

Jareth turned to face her anger and no remorse clearly sketched upon his face. "What did you do," he demanded in a cold, menacing voice.

Sarah crawled over next to Jareth placing a hand on his shoulder in a futile attempt to calm him. Toby just watched from where he sat unsure of what would happen.

In a weak voice, Ladonna whispered using his name which she hadn't since that tragic day of Lorena's death feeling she did not have the right to, "Jareth, I know you are furious, but it was the only way I could give my wedding gift to the two of you. You would have never trusted me enough to allow me to do so otherwise. I caused you so much pain. I wanted to give you something that would bring you happiness." Ladonna paused, weak from exertion.

"What does that have to do with Sarah," Jareth interrogated her unsatisfied with her answer thus far.

"Everything," Ladonna said in a hoarse voice, "Humans from Sarah's world die. Their lifespan is short, but Sarah's no longer is. I gave her my immortality."

"What," Sarah gasped her gaze switched from Ladonna to Jareth back to Ladonna.

Jareth's expression changed. He could no longer be angry with this woman for he knew what she had sacrificed.

"Thank you," he said truly moved by the gift Ladonna had given them both, "I am certain Lorena will be waiting for you on the other side."

"I hope so." Ladonna gave a bleak grin. "I just hope one day that you realize I truly hate what I did and can forgive me for the pain I caused us both."

"I have known that for a long time now," Jareth told her, "I do forgive you."

"You are just saying that because I am dying," Ladonna insisted.

"No, I am not," Jareth pressed, "You loved her as much as I and I know you felt the guilt throughout the years of what happened."

A tear slid down the woman's face. "Thank you. One favor for a dying woman please."

Jareth nodded, "Ask and it shall be done."

"You never let anyone know where you buried her body. Please bury me beside her," Ladonna pleaded her eyes imploring him.

"I will. You have my word. I promise," Jareth assured her. Wanting to comfort the dying woman, Jareth added, "I am grateful you did look after me like Lorena asked you to."

"You honor me Jareth. Lorena was lucky to have you as a friend. I will never forget the short period of time we were actually friends," Ladonna murmured as her last words faded off as she closed her eyes.

"Thank you so much for the gift. I apologize for being so rude to you before. I appreciate it and will remember you always for it," Sarah stated in a rush hoping the woman had heard it before she had completely died.

Sarah looked over at Jareth who appeared distraught staring at the body. "Are you okay?"

A solemn expression formed on his face. "I hated this woman for so long. But it still hurts to watch her die." He turned to Sarah. "She never actually meant to hurt anyone. She was a member of my kingdom, at one time a friend, and a part of Lorena's life. Lorena loved her so much. In a way, it feels like I am losing Lorena all over again. I should have at least tried to forgive her earlier if only because of Lorena. She even kept looking after me after Lorena died even though when I warned her not to. She is even the reason you are here with me."

Sarah wrapped her arms around Jareth's shoulders comforting him. "Jareth, it is better late than never. You let her know that you forgave her before she died and that's what matters. Besides should haves do not change what has happened and what is."

She glanced over at Toby, who was turned away from the emotional scene towards the crib. "For instance, what if I had never wished Toby away, demanded David not to take that road that night, if you had not agreed to help Ladonna, and countless other things. Where would we be? Who would we be? Would things be better or worse? We don't know. Therefore, we just have to accept it and move on because our choices make us who we are for better or worse and drive our lives in the direction where we end up. At least for now, these decisions have brought us together and that is what Ladonna wanted so at least keep that in mind."

He brought a hand up to her cheek rubbing a thumb against it. "You're right, my love. I will only mourn the woman and not the decisions that were made."

Removing Sarah's arms from around him, he told her, "I will leave and bury her next to Lorena's grave now. I should not be long."

"I'll go with you," Sarah insisted as they helped each other up off the floor.

Looking down with a frank expression on his face his said, "I would rather you not. This is really something I feel like I need to do by myself. You should go back to the reception and I will join you there when I am through."

"I understand. I'll stay but I do not feel up to going back down amongst all those people trying to be social after what just happened."

Jareth could see that Sarah was still tired from being given Ladonna's immortality and knew she was probably disturbed by the recent event.

Nodding he told her, "Well then, wait in the sitting room for me." He gave her a drained smile. "If we do not show back up down there everyone will probably just assumed we snuck off early to be together anyway."

"We are just not in the way we wanted." She returned his tired smile with a weary one of her own.

Scooping down to pick up Ladonna's lifeless body, Jareth looked at Toby. "Toby."

Toby turned around, "Yes?"

"Keep an eye on your sister till I return." Toby nodded as a private message of trust and protection over Sarah passed between them.

"I will return to your side soon, my love," Jareth promised Sarah before leaving.

Sarah found herself staring down at the floor where Ladonna had been when she heard her brother's voice from behind her.

"Let's get out of here Sarah."


	42. Chapter 42

The Tragedy

Chapter 42

* * *

When Jareth returned, he found that Sarah had insisted on bringing Mary Elizabeth to the sitting room as well not wanting to leave her in the other room after what had transpired.

"Well, considering you blew the door off the hinges," Sarah jokingly harassed him seemingly in a more relaxed mood at Jareth finally joining them.

Jareth simply shrugged his shoulders. "I'll have it repaired before the end of the day tomorrow."

He turned to Toby, "So you are planning to stay for a while I hear from my wife." He shot a smile at Sarah as he said wife loving the fact that it was finally true.

"Well it seems that Sarah's promise to let Mary Elizabeth visit her uncle was a false one." He gave his sister a playful ugly look. "So I guess if I want to see my niece I am just going to have to visit more often and stay some. Besides my classes are finished until the fall and work is slack with the out-of-town college kids gone. That and I figured I could watch Mary Elizabeth so the two of you could have more alone time together for a while."

Glancing at Sarah, Jareth told Toby, "Although that is certainly not necessary we thank you."

"Yes," Sarah agreed and added, "When she is older I promise."

Toby shook his head. "No, no, I don't want to hear it. Besides with the time here I might be an old man in my world before you ever let her."

Sarah shot Toby a glare shaking her head. "Well, then you will just have to be an old man."

Jareth couldn't help but laughing. "It is nice to be part of a family again especially this one."

Sarah leaned over placing a hand on his arm. As she did so her necklace tumbled out from behind the top of her dress. "As it should be," she told him.

He smiled as he turned towards her. The smile quickly faded being replaced with an expression of shock and confusion as Jareth drew his eyebrows together.

"Where did you get that necklace from," he demanded in a quiet but alarmed voice.

Sarah was puzzled by Jareth reaction to the necklace. "It was my mother's. Toby found it among our father's possessions and brought it to me. Why?"

He didn't answer her but instead asked, "How did your mother come to acquire the necklace?"

"I don't know. She had it as long as I remember. Jareth, what is wrong? You are worrying me!" Sarah squeezed his arm.

Jareth shook his head. "One more question. I know it could not be, but what did your mother look like?"

"Black curly hair, blue eyes, her face shape and figure were similar to my own. Please tell me what this about." Sarah was watching him with anxious, concerned eyes.

Jareth set back seemingly relieved about something.

"It could not have been her. I knew it could not be, but then how," he murmured aloud to himself while Sarah and Toby sat watching him confused by what was ailing Jareth.

"Jareth," Sarah said.

Jareth turned to her.

"I did not mean to worry you my dear. I am just trying to understand how you, I mean your mother, ended up with that necklace." He bit his lower lip.

"What do you mean," Sarah asked, "Why is it important? Why does it matter?"

Jareth closed his eyes for a minute in silence before reopening them. "I gave that necklace to Lorena."

"What," Sarah exclaimed flabbergasted feeling that the wind had just been knocked out of her. The same questions that Jareth had been wondering start racing through her mind now. She could not believe that this necklace that she had always known as her mother's had belong to Lorena and that Jareth was the one that had given it to her. How is it possible that something Jareth gave to her made its way to me she wondered. She marveled at the irony of it all.

"Are you certain? Couldn't it just look similar," Toby questioned.

"No, I'm certain." Jareth reached for the necklace resting it in his hand. "She always like my necklace so I had a smaller, more elegant version made for her."

Sarah looked down at her necklace then to Jareth's. "It is the same design. I never even thought about it upon seeing yours or when Toby brought me my mother's this morning. How could I have never noticed that before? And how did it manage to come to me?"

"I do not know," Jareth said in frustration, "It is another mysterious and strange connection between us just like the book and figurines. I think Ladonna was wise when she said we where destined to be together before we even knew because there are too many old occurrences that seem to bond us together."

"Ladonna? Could it have been her," Sarah questioned eager for answers.

"I do not see how." Jareth shook his head, "Lorena had on the necklace when I buried her. No one, not even Ladonna, knew where I buried her."

Toby stammered shocked by the new knowledge that the necklace had been buried on the body of a dead woman, "If she had it on, then how is it possible unless a grave looter stumbled upon the grave and unearth it?"

"I don't know." Jareth threw a hand up in the air. "That is what does not make sense. Lorena's grave has never been disturbed for I placed it somewhere no ventures and placed a magical spell of protection around it so it could never be disturbed. My parents, who would have had no reason, and Ladonna are the only ones at the time and since then who could have possibly broken pass the spell."

Turning to Sarah, he asked, "Are you certain you never heard anything about how your mother received the necklace?"

"Not that I remember. I was very young when she died." Sarah shook her head wishing she could help.

Suddenly, Sarah busted out with eagerness, "Wait, Jareth, the mirror can it be used again to summon a different person for someone that a dead one had already been summoned for, someone who has been dead a while?"

Jareth's eyes grew big and he backed away from Sarah looking upset before shaking his head. "Sarah…after last time…it's not a good idea for you…not again."

Sarah grabbed Jareth's hand. "That was different. I had just lost David whereas my mother, I accepted her loss a long time ago. I will be fine. So, can it be done?" Sarah had noticed that Jareth had never denied that it could be accomplish.

Heaving a sigh, Jareth told her, "Yes it can, but are you sure about this?"

"Sarah?" Toby gave her a questioning look of concern.

Her eyes became hard and determined as she informed them, "Yes, I am."

She stood up, "Let's go."

"No, but it's late. You have been through too much today. You are tired. You need your rest. It can wait till tomorrow," Jareth told her in a commanding voice. "Now, come here," he said while pulling her down into his lap wrapping his arms around her, "You are not going anywhere."

"I think Jareth is right," Toby inserted.

"Jareth, I won't be able to sleep tonight now anyway. I will be too anxious so we may as well. Or, is your real reason is that you are just too eager to get me to the bedroom my new husband," Sarah contested with a tease.

"Oh, great," Toby muttered rolling his eyes.

Ignoring Toby, the ends of Jareth's mouth curved upwards as he couldn't help but grinning at Sarah, "Well, I was afraid you would be too tired for that tonight, but if you are not…"

Toby groaned, "Come on now!"

Sarah smirked, "Well, I'm not, just like I am not too tired to use the mirror to get answers tonight."

"Hmmm…," Jareth murmured pursuing his lips, "Why do I get the impression that I will continue to hear about the mirror until I agree?"

"Exactly, I'm stubborn remember. I will continue to badger you until morning so you may as well agree now and be done with it for the sooner you do, the sooner we'll have it done and can retire to our rooms," Sarah warned him with an unrelenting look.

Jareth huffed glancing over at Toby, "She's your sister. You talk some sense into her."

"Yeah right, like that is going to happen. And all that means is that I've been stuck with her since the day I was born," he told Jareth, "Whereas you, you're the one who has chosen to be stuck with her by marrying her."

Jareth smiled giving Sarah a peck on the cheek, "And I would not have it any other way. Alright then, let's go." He reluctantly released Sarah from his grip.

Sarah hopped up. "Toby, can you carry Mary Elizabeth?" If they were going to summon her mother's spirit, she thought it would be nice for her daughter, her mother's grandchild to be present.

Upon reaching the room, Jareth inquired again if she was certain about using the mirror again, which she quickly asserted her decision to.

Jareth stood in front of the mirror.

"I call upon the Great One, the keeper of life and death. I request of you to bring forth one whose flame has done perished. Her flame was extinguished a long time ago. Allow the flame to burn once more, before it undyingly burns out," Jareth's voice boomed out.

Sarah watched as her mother emerged from the mirror. Jareth and Toby, the later who had seen a few pictures of the woman before, saw the remarkable resemblance between the two women.

"Mother," Sarah said with a smile.

Sarah's mother came forth and embraced her daughter. "My beautiful daughter, oh, how I have missed you. I hated not being able to be there to see you grow up into the lovely woman you have become but I did peek in on you from afar at times."

"I missed you too," Sarah replied warmth at seeing her mother again filling her heart.

"Yes, but my absence brought others in your life that you love." Sarah's mother gave a sad smile as she glanced at both men. She turned to Toby, "You look so much like your father. I'm glad he found another to love after my death."

Moved by her words, Toby just nodded holding back tears at the words and at the memory of his late parents.

Turning to Jareth, Sarah's mother brought a hand up placing it on Jareth's cheek. "And you, you love my daughter so much and have done so much for her. I am proud to be able to call you my son, your majesty."

Jareth felt his heart swell. "I am honored by your words for I fear I do not deserve them for I am the one grateful just to have Sarah in my life." He looked lovingly at his wife.

Sarah's mother smiled for the love was evident in both the newlyweds' eyes.

"That is apparent, which is what makes my words so true," she reaffirmed her statement as she turned back to her daughter, "Now how about introducing me to my sweet grandchild?"

Taking Mary Elizabeth from her brother, Sarah presented her daughter to her mother. "Mary Elizabeth, this is your grandmother."

The grandmother took the child in her arms and kissed her brow cooing at her for a couple of minutes before returning her to Sarah. "She is precious and I can tell she will have your spirit."

Sarah and Jareth glanced at each other knowing full too well what that could mean in raising her. Jareth had a wisp of a grin remembering what Sarah had been like as a teenager.

"Now, may I ask why you summoned me for I do not have much longer," the woman asked in a pleasant voice.

"We need to know how you came about obtaining your necklace," Sarah told her as she pulled the necklace into view, "It is important because the necklace is connected to Jareth's past."

"Really?" Sarah's mother appeared surprised. "It is actually an interesting story, which I told you about, but maybe you were so young that you do not remember. After one of my plays one night, a woman mysteriously appeared in my locked dressing room. I was a bit panicked for I could not reach the door, but she assured me that she meant no harm and only wanted to give me something. She handed me the necklace telling me it would bring me good luck. She urged me to put it on. I hesitantly did so convinced that she was a potentially crazy fan that could be dangerous. Once I did so, she disappeared as quickly as she had come. Before I had a chance to remove the necklace your father rushed in telling me that my doctor had called with the results of why I had been feeling sick for several days. I was pregnant with a child I was told I would never conceive. I took it as a sign that my prayers for a child had been answered and wore the necklace for the rest of my life."

Sarah looked down smiling at her own child. "I remember now."

Jareth asked, "What did the woman look like?"

Sarah's mother bit her lower lip trying to remember. "Dark hair, average hair, she was a charming looking women, but that is all I can tell you for it was so long ago."

Jareth gave her a heartening smile. "Thank you for help. Any little bit of information is helpful."

"You're welcome," she replied then turned to Sarah, "I must go now. I love you."

"I love you too," Sarah told her as she watched her mother disappear back into the mirror.

Jareth was quietly observing her. When Sarah noticed this, she shook her head at him. "I'm fine. Stop worrying so. I know it wasn't much but did her description give you any ideas?"

He grimaced, "I cannot help but to worry. Not really for a vague description like that can be anyone."

"It described Ladonna," Sarah commented, "Maybe she could have used a spell to get the necklace without knowing where the grave was."

Jareth shook his head, "No, you have to know the location of the object to do so meaning she would have to know the location of the grave. Besides when I confronted Ladonna and I found out the methods she had taken to bring us together, I forced her to tell me everything she knew and she promised that what I told you earlier was all."

An idea flashed through Toby's mind. "I do not know much about this kind of stuff, but could Lorena's spirit know who took it off her body?"

Jareth stiffened. "It is possible but I…I do not know if I could endure…"

Sarah interrupted him, "You don't have to if you can't. I understand."

Seeing the empathy in her eyes, Jareth felt compelled to elaborate. "Not fully I think you do not. It is not her loss and seeing her again that I am troubled with but the way she died."

"After the part Ladonna tricked you into playing in her death," Sarah finished for him aware of how the mere thought of it still tortured him.

Jareth's eyes connected with Sarah's and the unspoken comprehension passed between them.

"Ah, but Toby is correct for I do know who took the necklace from my body and can answer your questions," a soft female voice spoke.

Turning in the direction of the voice, Jareth gasped, "Lorena…but how?"

Approaching him, Lorena took his hand. "My dear friend, please stop blaming yourself for I do not blame you nor my cousin. You had no idea what she was actually planning and she did not know what would actually happen. I often told Ladonna that she often got in over her head. As for how I can be here, my cousin's spell only released my spirit. I technically did not die in a certain sense. It is complicated to explain."

Finding his hand falling through Lorena's when he attempted to squeeze it, he replied in anguish. "So does that mean that your spirit is trapped here instead of moving on? If so, then how can you expect me to forgive myself?"

Lorena looked sympathetically at him. "I never said I could not move on. I said it was complicated and in a way it is and in a way it is simple. The simple part is that I can move on when I choose to."

"Then, why have you not already," Jareth questioned.

She turned to look at Sarah, "Because of you."

"Because of me," Sarah repeated with a gasp, "Why?"

Lorena smiled. "When I…" Lorena glanced at Jareth and started again, "When my spirit separated from my body, I seemingly encountered Ladonna's vision of the two of you together."

"But you did not have visions," Jareth remarked.

Looking at Jareth, Lorena said, "I know and that is what was strange about it. I do not know if maybe it was a part of my powers I just never discovered since my cousin did possess them or what happened. However, how I had it is not important; for what is important is that I saw why Ladonna had tried to part our paths. Jareth, I loved you as a friend. You were my closest companion. You knew my deepest desires, but we would never have shared the love the two of you were meant to share. And there is more, Sarah was meant to stand at your side as Queen for as the rulers the two of you will bring more happiness to the kingdom than it has ever known, even more than when your parents ruled it. Sarah was destined to be with you before she was ever even born."

Sarah felt overwhelmed at hearing all this. "I was? We will?"

Lorena nodded. "Yes, and that is why I gave your mother the necklace. The necklace Jareth had meant for his future wife for at the time he gave it to me I knew he was on the verge of proposing marriage."

"You knew?" Jareth looked surprised.

"Yes," Lorena said not meeting Jareth's eyes, "I could feel it coming and was trying to figure out how to deter you while still keeping our friendship in tact. I talked to Ladonna and I believe that is when she set out to perform the spell. Therefore, the guilt you and she felt may have began with me."

Jareth was silent not certain what to say.

Lorena brightened up a bit. "But that was the past, and I still have more to tell. Not only did I ensure that Jareth's actual future wife would eventually receive his necklace, but I also ensured that his future wife would knew about him."

Sarah interrupted beaming, "It was you, wasn't it? The books and figurines, you were behind that also, weren't you?" It made sense to Sarah considering what Lorena had done with necklace and considering Ladonna had swore she was not behind it.

"Yes, I was," Lorena chuckled. "I made sure you were to know of Jareth and the kingdom so that one day the two of yours paths would cross."

Jareth shook his head slightly laughing. "You? I cannot believe you did that." He then became a bit more serious. "Why did you put in the book that children are turned to goblins then? Did you want her to think I was evil for some reason? And how did you even know she would wish Toby away to me?"

Lorena laughter became more as she told him, "No, I did not really mean for her to think badly of you. However, think about the state of mind a teenage girl who wishes her baby brother away to a Goblin King may be in. She might actually want to leave him there if she believes no harm will come to him."

Toby scowled.

Sarah became a bit defensive as she glanced at Toby. "I would not have…I could not have…I might have been selfish and angry but I still would never have just left him. After all, no matter how I was feeling at the time, I still loved my brother."

Turning serious, Lorena informed them, "Well, I could not take that chance."

"And, what about being certain about wishing me away then," Toby asked and added with a bit of sarcasm, "If you were so worried about her not trying to get me back then how did you even ensure that she would actually wish me away?"

Lorena bit her bottom lip. "Well, I do own you an apology for that I guess. I waited until the time was right till one day that Sarah's teenage hormones and being upset at her stepmother was at an all time high. Then, I…" Lorena paused. "Well, I then moved her Lancelot toy into your crib and stayed there unseen upsetting you, making you cry so that Sarah would become so aggravated that she wished you away. You have my apologies Toby."

"Um, okay," Toby said kind of dumbly.

Sarah just shook her head not believing able to believe how much Lorena had manipulated her life. "You aren't responsible for anything else, are you?"

"No, I just aided Ladonna's progress or she aided mine without her knowledge of it," Lorena answered her.

With a smile, Jareth said, "You and Ladonna were definitely related."

"I guess I picked up a few of her tricks along the way," Lorena said, "I need to go now. My cousin waits for me. Goodbye, Jareth."

"Wait, I have one more question," Sarah stopped her.

Lorena turned to her. "Yes?"

"You apparently knew my life fairly well so what was your idea when you discovered David coming into my life." Sarah looked kind of grimed face at the prospect of Lorena having done something a bit darker.

Lorena shook her head passionately. "I hope you believe me when I tell you that it was just David's time and I had nothing to do with that. After you departed here and put this place behind you, I did keep unsuccessfully trying to find ways to bring you and Jareth back into each others paths but when David became a part of your life, I thought I had failed and gave up. However, when I discovered you were to have a child, I thought maybe it was you baby that was the one and not you so I continued to follow you and her. I saw the horrific events of that night you feared I caused but could not stop them. However, I did watch over Mary Elizabeth until she was safely with Jareth. It was then that I realized that events had actually played out like they were apparently meant to. I also wondered if it was to give both you and Jareth the experience of losing someone you held so dear to your hearts to bring the two of you even closer and develop your relationship to the level it has become. Truly do know I am sorry for your loss and no matter what I would have wanted, I would have never gone to those extremes."

She nodded, "Thank you and I sorry for having to ask that but I just had to know."

"I understand," Lorena assured her, "And one more thing before I go. The spell left me with something else."

Smiling she walked over to Sarah and Mary Elizabeth, "A parent should never outlive their child, not even an immortal one."

Lorena took Mary Elizabeth's hand in hers murmuring just a few words. Jareth wanted to say something but could not find the words as Sarah stood tearing running down her face.

When Lorena was finished, Sarah was shocked to notice that even a spirit could look weak.

"Goodbye…" she whispered as she disappeared.

"Goodbye, my friend," Jareth said sadly, "Thank you for everything."

Sarah wiped the tears from her face as Jareth walked over to her putting an arm around her.

"Let's head to bed. It has been too long of a day. I think we all need rest."

Sarah nodded as she leaned into Jareth feeling drained. Toby took Mary Elizabeth from her and followed them from the room.

* * *

I did not mean for this chapter to be so long but it seems better as one long chapter instead of trying to break it up.

Actually, I could have named Sarah's mother for if you look closely at the clippings in Sarah's scrapbook at the beginning of the movie it does say her name is Linda, but I had basically finished writing it when I remembered the clippings and decided not to change it.

The next chapter will be the final one for everything else I had planned has played out except for what I have planned for the final chapter. Have a nice day!


	43. Chapter 43

The Tragedy

Chapter 43

Alright, here it is, the final chapter. Hope you enjoy!

* * *

They were so emotionally drained from the events of the days that the only thing Sarah and Jareth felt like doing when they reached their bedroom was to lay in each others' arms still clothed in their wedding attire until they fell asleep.

In the morning, Sarah woke up still in Jareth's arm to see Jareth looking down at her smiling contently.

She smiled back up at him. "What are you thinking?"

"Just how lucky I am to be waking up to such a beautiful sight."

"You flatter me too much my lord," Sarah laughed sliding up some on the pillows to a lounging sitting position beside Jareth as he rolled his eyes at her. She leaned her head on his shoulder. "We must both be lucky then."

"Yes, we must," he agreed thinking about both family and those he now considered his friends that were also Sarah's friends.

She then looked up at him and smiled. "I love you."

"And I you," Jareth replied.

Sarah then reached up cupping his cheek and placed a gentle kiss on his lips. As she did so, Jareth pulled her closer into him wrapping his other arm around her. The gentle kiss quickly became more intense as Jareth pulled her onto him. Supporting his weight, he rolled over placing her underneath his body.

Lifting his head up to break their kiss, he panted, "We've better stopped this if you want to be up in time for breakfast. Otherwise, you will not be getting out of this bed."

"Toby has Mary Elizabeth, so does it matter," she asked.

"Not really, unless you are hungry," Jareth said giving Sarah a smoldering look, "but I will tell you something. I am not interested in food at the moment myself."

Sarah smirked while at the same time stroking the back of Jareth's neck, "Now that you mention it, I am a bit hungry."

"Really," Jareth said as he leaned down and kissed her neck, "Are you sure?" He kissed her collarbone causing Sarah to groan just a little. "Are you really sure?"

"I'm sure," Sarah said.

"If that is what you want, my love." Disappointed Jareth tried pulling away.

Sarah locked her arms around his neck. "My husband, when did I ever say I was hungry for food?"

Jareth appeared a little perplexed, "But, you just…"

Sarah laughed, "I never said I was hungry for food. I am hungry for something else my husband." Sarah slid a leg up Jareth's thigh.

"Hmm…you are wicked," Jareth purred breaking into a toothy grin. He moved a hand down to Sarah's thigh that was inched up beside his thigh massaging it.

A smug look crossed Sarah's face. "Well, you have been teasing me for far too long making us wait until we were married."

"Well, it was only proper," Jareth replied then started grinning again, "but now it is our honeymoon."

"It is," Sarah remarked and asked in a gullible voice, "So what are you planning on doing about that?"

Jareth smirked and replied in a smooth, deep voice, "Holding you hostage in this bed all day."

"Really," she questioned with a half-smile, "And what do you plan on doing in bed all day?"

"You'll see," Jareth breathed into her ear before kissing her neck again as his hand rode up her thigh underneath her dress. Sarah moaned as she closed her eyes letting her hands find their way to the tail of Jareth's shirt dragging it up, allowing her hands to roam free over Jareth's bare skin.

Jareth held to his promise of never letting Sarah leave the bed that day as they continued to make love throughout periods of the day.

And no one ever did see the two newlyweds until the following day when they finally reappeared for a very late breakfast.

Four months passed and Toby stayed at the castle during this time.

At breakfast one morning Sarah questioned, "Toby, isn't it about time for your classes to start back?"

"I'm afraid so," Toby said, "but I've actually been thinking about taking a year off and just staying here if you two will have me."

"Well, I'm certain Jareth wouldn't mind," Sarah commented.

"No, I wouldn't," Jareth inserted his opinion as he lifted a spoon to Mary Elizabeth's mouth.

"And I know that I would be thrilled," Sarah continued, "But can I ask why you decided this?"

Toby frowned trying to look pitiful. "You upset me. I just want to spend more time with my family. During the time you were here, I realized just how much I miss you."

Sarah already had an inkling as to why, but Jareth beat her to it.

Jareth glanced over at Toby, "Or could it be that young Miss Rosalea you seem sweet on?"

Toby turned beat red.

Looking at Jareth, Sarah said, "So, I wasn't the only one to notice."

Toby stammered, "I don't know what you mean."

Getting up, Sarah told Jareth, "Here, I'll clean her up," as she gave Toby a look like he was trying to get something pass her and it was not going to work, "Toby, you are my brother and I've seen in the past how you react around girls you like. You like her and don't try to deny it."

"I admit I think she is nice and she certainly is attractive," Toby commented.

"Okay," Jareth said agreeing to Sarah's offer to clean up Mary Elizabeth while standing up. "A little piece of advice Toby, it might help if you actually talk to her."

"I will," Toby commented and then added, "I do not think I really need advice from an old married geezer who spent too many years just pining away for my sister instead of doing something about it."

From where Sarah was cleaning up Mary Elizabeth, she snickered.

"Yeah, an old MARRIED geezer", Jareth repeated stressing the word married. "Just remember the married part. I got the girl in the end."

"That you sure did." Sarah glanced over her shoulder lovingly at Jareth. Jareth returned her look with the same amount of love shining from his eyes.

"Besides", Jareth continued turning back to Toby, "I think if you are planning to romance Miss Rosalea we may need to have a discussion on the customs of my kingdom.

"That's not necessary," Toby rolled his eyes.

"Actually, it is for some are quite different from the ones you are use to," Jareth disagreed and added, "Besides, everyone knows that you were named my heir and that you are my brother-in-law. Therefore, you will be held to higher standards as a result."

Toby made a face. "Great!" Relaxing his face, he added, "Actually, I've been meaning to talk to you about the heir thing."

"What about," Jareth asked.

"Well, Mary Elizabeth is your step-daughter now…," Toby was saying when Jareth interrupted.

"No daughter, I want none of that step mess," Jareth insisted.

"Well, daughter and you even had her given all the rights of a princess in your land, so if females can assume leadership in your land, I believe it would be better if Mary Elizabeth was declared your heir over me," Toby reasoned.

Jareth nodded. "There are no rules about leaders needing to be male for a female is just as capable of leading as a male and Mary Elizabeth really would be the first in line to the throne if I had not named you earlier, but are you sure about this?"

"Yes," Toby told him, "I appreciate the fact that you thought enough of me to name me your heir, but I have no interest in leading and I still do not know if I will live here forever, just for the time being. However, I have a feeling that Mary Elizabeth will be like her mother and want to stay here."

"I hope she does and I am kind of being selfish hoping you will too," Sarah smiled looking down at Mary Elizabeth then back to Toby as she said it, "but it won't matter anyway unless Jareth does it just for sentimental purposes."

"Why," Toby asked puzzled.

Sarah looked at Jareth. "Because a blood heir would be the first in line no matter who is named heir, am I correct?"

Jareth smiled back, "Are you saying?"

Sarah just nodded demurely with a small smile.

"Did you hear that Mary Elizabeth? You are going to have a new baby brother or sister," Jareth announced as he raced over to Sarah throwing his arms around her waist picking her up spinning her around with him.

Sitting her down, he muttered, "Oh, I probably should not do that!"

"It is fine," Sarah said smiling at his silliness.

"Congratulations sis," Toby said and added, "And another reason for me to stay now."

Sarah shot him a look and teased, "Yeah right, you're just trying to find an excuse to deter from your reason, Miss Rosalea, but thanks anyway."

"How far along are you? How long have you know? Why have you not told me before now," Jareth questioned eager to know as much about Sarah's pregnancy as he could.

Sarah laughed, "Slow down! Let me answer one question at a time, Jareth. I've only known a few days and I really don't know how far along I am but I know I'm not far. And as far as telling you, I was just waiting for the right time and this seemed like as good of a time as any."

Jareth scooped down putting an arm under Sarah's legs lifting her in his arms.

"Please don't tell me that you are now going to try to insist I don't walk during my pregnancy and that you need to carry me," Sarah said sarcastically half-joking, half-serious aware of the lengths Jareth sometimes went to.

"Hmmm…that will not be necessarily, but that is not a bad idea. Then, I would have you in my arms the entire time," Jareth said and glanced to Toby, "Bring Mary Elizabeth, please."

As Toby came and picked up Mary Elizabeth, Sarah inquired, "Where are we going?"

"You'll see," Jareth said as he walked on with Toby following them.

They ended up on a balcony overlooking a section of the kingdom where Jareth finally placed Sarah down as he called over the edge.

"Everyone gather around for I have some announcements to make!"

As the beings below gathered, Jareth announced, "First, my named heir Toby, who has decided to live amongst us for an extended stay." A cheer rose that Jareth had to raise his hand to silence before continuing, "has graciously relinquished his position as my named heir wanting it to become the honor of his niece, my daughter." Another cheer erupted from the assembly below and Jareth waited for it to subside before going on.

"But the even bigger news, something that I have just learned that has brings me great joy to announce," Jareth began.

"I have just learned from my wife, your queen, that our family will soon be expanding. Sarah and I are will be expecting the arrival of our child in the near future."

A cheer that was louder than any so far exploded from the masses at the news. Sarah already knew that she was going to hear grumbling from Hoggle about Jareth spreading the news before they told him first. He had begun to learn to play Sarah's friend card back at her way too well lately.

Jareth threw his hand up signaling for silence from below. "So, please spread the joyous news throughout the land that I am to be father."

As the crowd exploded into cheers again Jareth turned to Sarah still ecstatic. "I am to be a father," he said to her.

"You are already are," Sarah told him but knew that this was different then being a father to Mary Elizabeth. Although it was obvious to everyone that Jareth loved Mary Elizabeth like his own, this would be their first child together.

He glanced over his shoulder at Mary Elizabeth and smiled making a cute little face at her causing her to giggle in response. "I guess I am and this time I get to experience it all, the pregnancy, the birth, the early stage of the baby's life."

"You're crazy," Sarah laughed at him.

Jareth was beaming, "I don't care. If I am crazy, then let me never be sane again."

Sarah just laughed.

"I cannot wait for another little one just like her whether it is a boy or a girl," Jareth continued with his outburst of happiness, "I do not care. I am just so happy. You have brought so much joy into my life my love."

"And I love you, my love," Sarah said and added, "but you know if it is a boy, we could name him after you calling him Jareth Jr."

Jareth shook his head recalling how he had once planned to called Toby Jareth. "Let us not."

"Besides," Toby joked, "A little Jareth is too scary of a thought to comprehend."

Sarah thought about what Jareth had said he was like as a child and shook her head, "You might be right. After all, this Jareth here is often more than enough trouble for me to deal with."

"I'll give you something to deal with," Jareth growled as he pulled her to him planting a kiss on her lips.

Toby walked off shaking his head amusement leaving the expectant parents alone in their bliss wondering how such tragic events lead to such bliss for his sister. He smiled as he thought of Rosalea wondering if maybe these events could possibly lead to his own happiness as well.

* * *

I thank everyone so much for your interest in the story and your reviews. I am truly amazed at how many people liked my story enough to follow it.

Now, I know some have already requested that I keep going with this story. Sorry, but this is the end for this story. It is certainly a lot longer than I ever imagined it becoming! However, if enough want, I do have ideas for sequels to this story.

Some possibilities for storylines I have contemplated:

-Exploring the pregnancy obviously for does the type of magic Jareth possesses and a child of his is likely to start in the womb and how would that affect Sarah's pregnancy? The progress of the expecting parents' relationship during the pregnancy.

-Exploring Toby and Rosalea's potential relationship. Is Rosalea a mortal from Toby's world that was brought to the Underground as a child or is she an immortal magical being like Jareth? If she is a magical immortal, how will Toby cope with that? What if Toby was torn between someone originally from his world and a magical being from the Underground?

-What would happen if Toby in courting Rosalea or some other lady of the kingdom broke a custom causing a major issue that Jareth would have to handle causing a strain in his and Sarah's relationship?

-Can Toby cope with completely living in the Underground and will he eventually decide to return to his world?

-Could descendants of the king of Malum still be around and want to hurt Sarah to take revenge on Jareth?

Storylines that would have to let time progress some.

-Sarah is immortal but Toby is still mortal. What happens as Sarah watches as her brother grows older?

-Mary Elizabeth and her half-sibling's relationship. Is it good or strained?

-What if it were Jareth's child that decided to leave the Underground leaving the responsibilities of the kingdom to Mary Elizabeth?

-Mary Elizabeth returning to the world her parent came from? Jareth's child in that world?

There are a few more ideas but they would be more of spoilers rather than plots to mention them. And just because I mention it does not mean I would necessary use it depending of the flow of the stories and what would happen. Also, some of these would conflict with each other. So let me know if you would be interested in a follow-up.

Thanks again for all the support and interest!


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